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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27372553">The Logia Brothers</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kai_zero/pseuds/Kai_zero'>Kai_zero</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>One Piece</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/F, F/M, Logia Akuma no Mi | Logia Devil Fruit, Luffy Has a Logia Fruit, More Pairings to be added as they appear - Freeform, More Pirate-like Crew, Multi, Peacemain Pirates, Smart Monkey D. Luffy, Some Enemies Die</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-04-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 12:01:48</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>147,918</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27372553</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kai_zero/pseuds/Kai_zero</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When a single action takes Luffy into Dadan's care a year early. Vice-Admiral Garp could never have imagined what trying to keep Luffy from meeting any pirates could cause. Now Luffy, Ace, and Sabo have their own powers to make each of their individual dreams come true. What will happen to the world when the three brothers each take to the sea to fulfill their destinies? No Yaoi.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Monkey D. Luffy/Nami</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>213</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Meeting the Devil, The Logia Brothers are Formed</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Hello one and all, Kairomaru here with a brand new story. I know I haven't updated in quite some time but life has not given me much time to do so. I apologize and promise that I am trying to get new chapters out for my three Naruto stories. In the mean time I have had a constant idea for a One Piece story that hasn't left me alone in a while so I decided to at least get a first chapter for it out. This story will be a bit AU with some OOC characters but it is necessary for the story to exist in the form and direction that I want to take it in. </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Regarding the pairing, if I decide to have serious relationships, I'm currently undecided if this will be a harem story or not. I can see Luffy with various women of the One Piece world and don't have a particularly favorite pairing. Not to mention that he and the other Straw hats are pirates, meaning one night stands at various islands throughout their journey would pretty much be a given in a realistically written story.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>So without further ado, I present my first One Piece fanfiction, The Logia Brothers!</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Chapter 1 – Meeting the Devil, The Logia Brothers Are Formed</strong>
</p><p>Our story begins on Dawn Island in the East Blue, the weakest and most peaceful of the four Blues. On this island we find Vice-Admiral, "The Hero", Monkey D. Garp leading his six year old grandson, Monkey D. Luffy, to the home of Curly Dadan a mountain bandit that Garp has known for years. Garp is entrusting her to raise Luffy whenever Garp himself isn't training his grandson to be a marine.</p><p>"Why do I have to go to this weird person's house, grampa?" Luffy asks with a pout as he follows Garp through the forest outside of Fuusha village.</p><p>"I've told you already, you brat, there have been reports of a famous pirate crew spotted in the East Blue in the last few months and I don't want you getting any ideas of meeting them. You're going to be a marine just like me." Garp said with a grimace as he bit into a rice cracker.</p><p>"But I don't want to be a marine! I wanna be a pirate, grampa!" Luffy loudly proclaimed with a grin. Garp quickly brought his fist down on Luffy's head sending the six year old into the forest floor face first.</p><p>"There is no way any grandson of mine is going to become a pirate." Garp argued as Luffy picked himself up off the forest floor. Luffy responded by sticking his tongue out at his grandpa as they continued on towards their destination. A while later Luffy and Garp arrived at the home of Curly Dadan and her group of bandits. They were greeted by one of Dadan's subordinates and brought in to meet with Dadan.</p><p>"So this is your brat, Garp?" Dadan asked as she looked over the small child sitting next to Garp happily stuffing his face with a large piece of meat.</p><p>"This is my grandson, Luffy, Dadan I need you to look after him for a bit. I'm sure he and Ace will get along quickly." Garp said with a grin.</p><p>"Give me a break!" Dadan shouted before sighing. "We can barely keep Ace under control and now you want us to raise your grandson too. I bet he's another monster." The bandit leader sighed with a frown.</p><p>"Well, here are your options, you can raise him or spend the rest of your lives in jail." Garp replied with a serious expression. "I've overlooked a lot of the illegal things you've done."</p><p>"Fine we'll take him." Dadan said with a defeated expression.</p><p>"Great!" Garp exclaimed with a grin. "Luffy, you'll be staying here for a while. There is another boy here that's three years older than you, I'm sure you two can make friends with each other."</p><p>"Ok, gramps." Luffy said without a care as he tossed the bone, picked clean of meat, he'd been eating from away and looked around before looking straight at Dadan. "Is there anymore meat?" he asked with a large grin.</p><p>"What!" Dadan shouted as she face faulted into the floor.</p><p>"Boss!" the many bandits that worked under Dadan called out as they tried to get their boss to respond to them.</p><p>The next day Luffy met Ace, their first meeting being less than friendly with Ace spitting on the younger boy. Luffy undeterred by Ace's unwillingness to make friends followed Ace around for three months before finally meeting Ace's friend Sabo at the place known as Grey Terminal. The two older boys eventually came to be friends with Luffy and the three could most often be seen running through the forest or Grey Terminal together. It wasn't until almost eight months later that something unexpected happened.</p><p>"So, Luffy, your seven now. What should we do to celebrate?" Sabo asked as he looked over at his two 'brothers' as the three sat on a small secluded beach hidden by the forest.</p><p>"I wanna eat some meat!" Luffy replied with a grin as both Ace and Sabo laughed at him.</p><p>"You already do that, Luffy, all the time actually." Ace responded with a grin. "When you're celebrating you're supposed to do something special."</p><p>"Special? The only that's going to happen differently is that gramps is gonna visit today." Luffy replied with his head tilted to the side slightly.</p><p>"Yeah, but hopefully he won't find us for a while if we stay here." Sabo replied as he stood up from the sand and started brushing his clothes off.</p><p>"I'm hungry though." Luffy said as he stood up as well.</p><p>"Yeah, I am too. I guess we could leave for just a little while to get some meat and stuff." Ace stated as his stomach growled.</p><p>"Yay! Meat!" Luffy shouted with a grin as the three brothers began to walk towards the forest.</p><p>"Hungry are you?" came a voice from behind the three boys. All three boys quickly turned around with Ace and Sabo grabbing their trusty metal pipes and holding them defensively in front of themselves while Luffy took a basic fighting stance Garp had taught him during one of his visits over the last year. The three boys looked towards the sea and saw an average looking man wearing long blue shorts and a dark blue shirt with a silver pattern that looked like waves on it. The man had brown hair and sea blue eyes and was holding a small burlap bag in his left hand. He was also standing just out of the sea as water from the tide gently soaked his bare feet.</p><p>"Who are you, bastard?" Ace questioned as he held his pipe threateningly towards the newcomer. Sabo and Luffy nodded at Ace's question while not taking their eyes off the man that had seemingly appeared from nowhere.</p><p>"Now, now, I'm just a passerby that happened to hear that three people were hungry." The man replied as he took a step forward. "As for my name, I'm called Umino Akuma. Might I ask your names?" the man replied with a calm grin.</p><p>"I'm Luffy!" Luffy responded instantly causing both of his brothers to sigh at his simple mindedness.</p><p>"I'm Sabo." Sabo responded with mistrust in his eyes.</p><p>"I'm Ace." Ace replied with a glare. "Now what do you want?"</p><p>"As I said, I just happened to be passing by and heard you three say you were hungry. As an adult I can't just let children go hungry now can I?" the man called Akuma said with a grin as he sat down on the beach sand. "I can't say much for this place, but in most places in the world adults that have food share it with hungry children if they meet." Akuma continued as he lifted the burlap bag he was carrying and placed it in front of himself.</p><p>"So you're going to give us the food in that bag!" Luffy yelled with a grin as he dropped his fighting stance and was barely restrained by Sabo from running straight towards the bag.</p><p>"That's right." Akuma replied with a grin as he opened the bag.</p><p>"What's in it for you, huh?" Ace asked while keeping his pipe trained on Akuma while Sabo continued to restrain Luffy.</p><p>"Knowing I prevented three boys from going hungry is all I need." Akuma responded as he reached into the burlap bag. "I can't say much for how these things might taste though." He said as he pulled an odd fruit from the bag and held it up for the three boys to see. All three took notice of the odd fruit in Akuma's hands it was shaped like a papaya but was a light grey color with black swirl markings all over the fruit.</p><p>"So that's it? You don't want money or anything?" Sabo questioned as Luffy finally stopped trying to run towards the bag of food. "Those fruits aren't rotten are they? Cause that one looks weird."</p><p>"I promise they're not rotten, but like I said I can't say much for how they'll taste." Akuma replied as he set the strange papaya-like fruit on the sand and reached into the bag for another one. The next fruit he pulled out was orange and red and somewhat resembled a dragon fruit. This fruit also had markings in the shape of swirls on each of the leaf-like parts of the fruit. Akuma set the second fruit down on the sand next to the first before pulling the last one out of the bag. This fruit looked like a small pineapple but was blue in color with yellow swirls covering the fruit.</p><p>"So, can I eat one of those?" Luffy asked Sabo and Ace as he stared at the three fruits with some drool coming out of his mouth.</p><p>"I'll eat one first, just to make sure they're not poisoned or something." Ace stated as he slowly walked towards Akuma and the fruits sitting in the sand. Both Sabo and Luffy looked on with worry as Ace picked up the strange looking dragon fruit.</p><p>"Enjoy, you get to eat a very rare fruit today." Akuma said with a grin as Ace took a small bite of the fruit.</p><p>"Ugh, this thing does taste bad. But it's not as bad as those durian fruit we ate that one time." Ace said as he continued to eat the dragon fruit look-a-like.</p><p>"So are they ok?" Sabo asked as he and Luffy each walked over a picked up a fruit. Sabo picked up the grey papaya and Luffy took the blue pineapple.</p><p>"Yeah, they're safe I think. Just aren't really tasty." Ace replied as he tossed the small fragment of fruit he had left into the sand. With a nod both Luffy and Sabo bit into their respective fruits.</p><p>"Yuck, I bet these fruits are rare because no one wants to grow them for food." Sabo said as he wolfed down the strange papaya before tossing the small remaining portion he had left into the sand as well.</p><p>"Not good, but it is food." Luffy said as he ate the last bit of pineapple off the core of the fruit and tossed it and the leaves on top into the sand like his brothers.</p><p>"I hope you feel better now that you've eaten." Akuma spoke as he stood up and brushed the sand off his shorts.</p><p>"Ace! Luffy! There you are! Thought you could hide from me did you!" Garp yelled as he came charging out of the forest and onto the beach. Though the instant he laid eyes on the man that was with the three brats he had come to find Garp's face lost all playfulness and grew stone serious instantly. "Boys, head back to Dadan's place. We're going to have a party to celebrate Luffy's seventh birthday there." Garp said in a no nonsense tone. All three boys were quick to dash back into the forest in the direction of Dadan's place while Garp continued to stare down Akuma. Only once Garp was sure the boys were gone did he speak again. "What are you doing here?"</p><p>"Oh? Wasn't it a little much to use Haki to enforce that command on the boys?" Akuma asked with a grin as he stared back at the Vice-Admiral.</p><p>"If it gets them away from you of all things, then yes." Garp replied as he took a few steps towards Akuma. "Now what are you doing here? What did you tell those boys?" Garp asked as he cracked his knuckles.</p><p>"Oh, that's not nice, I'm a thing now?" Akuma replied with a chuckle as Garp frowned at the man.</p><p>"You and I both know you aren't human, no matter how much you try and look like one. Now answer my question." Garp responded with a growl.</p><p>"Your answer is right by your feet." Akuma said with a dark grin as he looked down at the sand near Garp's feet. Garp looked down and spotted the remains of the three fruits the boys had eaten only a few minutes before. He instantly recognized the marking on the remains of the fruits and looked up at Akuma again.</p><p>"What did you give to them?!" Garp all buy roared as he took another few step towards Akuma.</p><p>"Logia." Akuma replied simply as if discussing a trivial matter, though the demented grin on his face ruined the nonchalant delivery of the statement.</p><p>"Why!" Garp demanded as he was only a few feet from Akuma now and glaring harshly.</p><p>"Why? That's obvious isn't it?" Akuma asked with the same demented grin as his eyes suddenly turned from sea blue with white sclera to a demonic yellow with black sclera and his teeth changed to resemble fangs. "One reason and one reason only, entertainment! I do things like this for the entertainment! I like chaos and disorder! I want to see things blowing up and bodies flying around! I'm not interested in simple day to day life, I don't care what new taxes the World Government puts in place, I don't want to know what country the fucking Tenryuubito are visiting! But you show me a large building that's on fire and people start jumping off the roof and I'm a happy guy! I'm amused as hell! I want to see a munitions base explode! I want to see an armada sink! I want to see a Tenryuubito die on his birthday! I want to see some guy running through a marine base with a high caliber gun firing at Marines! I want to see thousands of people in the streets killing each other! I want to hear about a country collapsing! I want to know about the World Government going bankrupt! I want to see people going crazy! Smoke and fire! Explosions and fighting! Exciting shit! That's what I call entertainment! It's just the kind of guy I am! Just the kind of guy I am! Hahahahaha!" Akuma ranted while laughing psychotically as his hands developed claws and the wind started picking up speed.</p><p>"Damn you devil!" Garp roared out as his right arm turned black with Haki and he punched Akuma in the face. Only for Akuma's body to break apart into sea water on impact and fly back towards the sea.</p><p>"I'm looking forward to the next few years, Mr. Marine." Akuma's voice said before the wind died down and all was calm on the beach again. Garp stood there enraged before calming down and pulling the small book of known Devil Fruits from the inside of his jacket pocket to try and identify the fruits the boys had eaten.</p><p>"I'm gonna have to call in that favor Kuzan owes me." Garp mumbled to himself as he flipped through the small Logia section of the book that Dr. Vegapunk had published for the Marines. "I wonder if Sengoku will let Aokiji of all people have a few months off to train the boys if I tell him how they came by their powers?" Garp thought out loud as he finally came to a Logia fruit that had similar form, coloration, and markings as the red fruit. "Mera Mera no Mi? Shit, that bastard really gave them Logia of all things." Garp grumbled as he flipped a few more pages before finding a match for the mostly eaten pineapple. "Goro Goro no Mi! Damn, this just keeps getting worse." Garp sighed as he flipped through several more pages before finding the last match. "Hai Hai no Mi? Never seen or heard of this one before. But if it's a Logia it's probably destructive in some way." Garp thought before standing up and kicking the remains of the three fruits into the ocean. With his inspection of the fruits done Garp headed back to Dadan's place to question the boys and celebrate Luffy's birthday. There was no reason to worry the boys with the identity of the man they had met but he had to know if anything else was said to the three boys.</p><p>Later that night, after celebrating Luffy's birthday, Garp told the three boys what the fruits they had eaten were. The boys were all shocked and asked what power they had gotten. After finding out which boy ate which fruit it was discovered that Ace ate the Mera Mera no Mi and was now a Fire Human. Luffy had eaten the Goro Goro no Mi and become a Lightning Human. While Sabo had consumed the Hai Hai no Mi and had now turned into an Ash Human. Garp promised the boys that he would have someone able to teach them how to control their new powers come to the island in a few weeks, hopefully before they ended up destroying something. After walking back to his Marine Ship Garp ordered his subordinates not to disturb him as he made a call to Fleet Admiral Sengoku. After a few rings Fleet Admiral Sengoku picked up and spoke.</p><p>"What is it Garp? Even when you take a vacation you find some way to cause me trouble." Sengoku said to the Vice-Admiral.</p><p>"We've got a problem, Sengoku. <strong>He</strong> showed up here in the East Blue." Garp stated seriously followed shortly by a thump from the other end of the line. A few seconds later the sounds of movement could be heard and Sengoku started speaking again.</p><p>"Akuma showed himself in the East Blue of all places. Report now, Vice-Admiral!" Sengoku ordered. Garp related all the details he'd been told by the boys all the way through the conversation he'd had with Akuma. "This is worrisome, Garp. But if all he did was give three boys the power of a Devil Fruit; even if they are Logia fruits, then we got off light. At least an island wasn't almost completely destroyed by a tsunami this time." Sengoku commented with a sigh already knowing that he was going to have to inform Commander In Chief Kong and the Gorosei of this latest appearance by Umino Akuma.</p><p>"One other thing I'd like to ask of you Sengoku." Garp said into the Den Den Mushi.</p><p>"What do you want, Garp?" Sengoku asked from the other side of the line.</p><p>"I'd like Kuzan to come to Dawn Island and teach the boys how to control their powers before this whole island is damaged or destroyed by accident." Garp requested as he lifted a glass of alcohol to his lips and took a sip.</p><p>"You want me to approve of a Marine Admiral taking time off to go and train three boys to control their Devil Fruit powers?" Sengoku asked rhetorically.</p><p>"Yes, sir." Garp replied formally.</p><p>"Fine, but you owe me later Garp, be glad it's been relatively calm recently so I have no need for all three Admirals to be on assignment already." Sengoku responded with a sigh. Garp clearly heard Sengoku start writing something over the Den Den Mushi.</p><p>"Tell Kuzan that this will clear up that favor he owes me too, would you Sengoku?" Garp asks as he pours himself another glass of rum.</p><p>"Fine, I'll tell him Garp. Sengoku, over and out." Sengoku said before hanging up the Den Den Mushi.</p><p>While waiting for Admiral Aokiji also known as Kuzan to arrive Garp started instructing the boys on how to control their Devil Fruit powers as best as he could. Not having any powers himself but working with dozens of fruit users over the years Garp did a fairly good job. By the end of two weeks all three boys could keep themselves in normal human state and had the basic ability to produce small amounts of their respective elements. At the beginning of the third week Garp took all three boys down to the docks of Fuusha village to greet their Devil Fruit teacher.</p><p>"When is he gonna get here gramps?" Luffy asked bored as he kept looking out at the ocean.</p><p>"He'll be here soon enough Luffy, be patient." Garp responded for the third time with a sigh.</p><p>"What's that on the ocean?" Sabo questioned as all four people turned to look at where he was pointing. Heading towards them was what appeared to be a man on a bicycle. The man was very tall and was wearing a white vest over a purple shirt and white pants. He had black hair and was literally riding a bike on the ocean.</p><p>"That's so cool!" Luffy shouted as sparkles filled his eyes while the man got closer and closer to the docks.</p><p>"It's kinda weird too." Ace said while watching the tall man get closer. The man quickly rode his bike onto the island shore and got off before propping the bike up against the nearest building.</p><p>"Boys, allow me to introduce you to your new sensei for a while. This is Admiral Aokiji, one of the strongest men the Marines have to offer." Garp announced when Aokiji stood in front of the four of them.</p><p>"Nice to see you again, Garp." Kuzan greeted before looking over the three boys he would be training until they could properly control their new powers.</p><p>"You're really tall!" Luffy yelled while staring up at Kuzan.</p><p>"Super tall." Sabo commented as he also looked up at the Admiral.</p><p>"Freakishly tall." Ace said with a frown as he looked at their new teacher.</p><p>"Hey, hey now. If you call me freakish none of the beautiful women on this island will hang out with me." Kuzan said while Garp just sighed at the lazy Admiral.</p><p>"You're not here to date the local women, Kuzan." Garp reminded with a sigh. "You're here to train these three to control their powers."</p><p>"Alright, alright no need to get excited." Kuzan replied as he took another look at his three new 'students'. "But, let's start tomorrow. For now I think I'll get a room at the local inn. Then I'll visit the local pub and see if I can't find a nice lady to talk to." the lazy marine finished as he walked his bike into town.</p><p>"He's kinda weird." Luffy, Sabo, and Ace said in unison while looking at Garp.</p><p>"This is gonna take a while." Garp said to himself as he had Ace, Sabo and Luffy follow him to Makino's pub for some dinner.</p><p>-x-x-x-x-<strong>End Chapter</strong>-x-x-x-x-</p><p>
  <strong>So what did you all think? Good? Bad? Let me know with a review. I'll try and get some new chapters out for my Naruto stories when I can, just remember for me life comes first.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Since some of you have probably figured it out I'll just go ahead and confirm.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Umino Akuma = Umi no Akuma which translates into Devil of the Sea. Akuma is in fact a physical manifestation of the Sea Devil that Devil Fruits are said to come from. The reason he seems somewhat nuts is because as a Devil he has no concern, sympathy, or consideration for human life. As he stated in this chapter all he cares about is being entertained. If he feels like he can get some enjoyment out of an action, like giving someone a powerful Devil Fruit, then he'll do it regardless if it puts the lives of others in danger.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Finally to stop all the people that I know are going to ask, Enel will still have a Devil Fruit. I'm just taking the concept of two different Logia having incredibly similar powers Hie Hie no Mi (Ice) and Yuki Yuki no Mi (Snow) and changing that slightly. Enel will still have electric powers but they'll be from a powerful Paramecia Fruit called the Hibana Hibana no Mi (Spark Spark Fruit).</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Until next chapter, later.</strong>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Logia Training with an Admiral</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Hello to all and welcome to chapter 2 of The Logia Brothers. Sorry for the months of wait but between work, getting fired, getting a new job and my grandfather passing away I've not had much time or inspiration to write. This chapter we'll see the training of Luffy, Ace and Sabo under Kuzan. I hope you like how it plays out.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Chapter 2 – Logia Training with an Admiral</strong>
</p><p>The day after Garp had introduced Kuzan to the three boys Ace, Sabo and Luffy were dragged out of bed by Garp just after dawn, with much complaining from all three of the boys in the process.</p><p>"Grandpa! I wanna sleep!" Luffy grumbled out as he stood in an open field far away from Fuusha Village.</p><p>"Yeah, why do we have to be up so early?" Sabo questioned while rubbing his eyes sleepily.</p><p>"Old jerk, waking us up so early." Ace muttered to himself as he yawned loudly.</p><p>"All of you be quiet! We're just waiting for Kuzan to show up so he can start your training." Garp replied with a growl as he glared at the three boys. However after waiting for almost half an hour Garp lost his patientence and used Soru to quickly dash back to Fuusha Village and check up on the tardy Admiral. Needless to say Garp was less than amused to find the perpetually lazy Admiral still asleep in his bed at the Inn. Garp frowned heavily before grabbing Kuzan by his right leg and bodily throwing him out of the second story window. "Get up you lazy brat!" Garp roared as Kuzan went sailing out the window. In a testament to his skill and prowess as an Admiral, Kuzan landed on his feet outside wearing white pajama pants and a long sleeved purple t-shirt.</p><p>"Hmm? I'm up, I'm up." Kuzan stated as he pushed his sleeping mask up onto his forehead and gave a loud yawn.</p><p>"You were suppose too be at the field North of the village thirty minutes ago!" Garp yelled at Kuzan as he landed from jumping out of the Inn's window.</p><p>"Oh? Is it that time already?" Kuzan wondered as he scratched the side of his head. "It's a little too early for me." He remarked with another yawn as he headed back towards the Inn.</p><p>"No you don't!" Garp growled a he grabbed Kuzan by the back of his shirt and dragged the tall man all the way back to the field with several bursts of Soru. When the two arrived they found all three boys playing sword fight with some sticks they found. Kuzan took in the scene with amusement on his face while Garp's eyebrow started twitching in frustration. "Get over here and pay attention you brats!" Garp barked at the three boys. Ace, Sabo and Luffy reluctantly dropped their sticks and walked over to the two Marines. "If you three want to control your new powers you need to listen to Kuzan starting now." Garp said to the three boys before taking several steps back and sitting down to watch the boy's first lesson.</p><p>"Hmm, well I guess we should start with learning some names." Kuzan stated with a sigh as he pointed to each boy and rattled off their names. "Ace, Luffy and Sabo correct?" All three boys nodded surprised the lazy Admiral had actually remembered their names from last night at dinner. "Before I start trying to teach anything I need you three to show me what you can do already." Kuzan explained while watching the three boys nod.</p><p>"Alright, I guess I'll go first." Ace said as he stepped forward and held up his right hand. In a few moments Ace's hand turned a bright, hot red before flames appeared in his palm. Kuzan nodded at the display prompting Ace to turn his hand back to normal. Ace stepped back as Sabo stepped up to go next.</p><p>"Here I go." Sabo said before both of his hands turned black and dispersed into two small clouds of ash with reddish embers swirling around. Once Kuzan nodded in recognition Sabo reformed his hands and walked back to stand by Ace and Luffy.</p><p>"My turn, my turn!" Luffy called out with a huge grin before putting both of his hands about a foot apart. With a look of concentration on Luffy's face small sparks of lightning began moving between his two hands in a constant stream of electricity. When Kuzan also gave him a nod Luffy stopped the sparks and jumped back towards his brothers.</p><p>"Alright, I see you all have the basic ability to call forth your powers. Can you become your elements completely yet?" Kuzan asked before a yawn escaped his mouth.</p><p>"Grandpa, taught us to remain in human form so we didn't accidently damage things." Luffy replied while Ace and Sabo nodded in agreement.</p><p>"I see, well then our first little lesson will be getting you comfortable with shifting between your solid human body and your elemental state." Kuzan said as he walked further out into the dusty field. "I'll demonstrate first so you can see what I'd like you to accomplish." Within a second Kuzan's whole body had turned into solid ice and the ground around his feet froze over from the intense cold. "This is my Hie Hie no Mi power, I'm an Ice Human. I want you three to be able to turn into your respective element just as quickly as I did. Once you can freely shift between these two states then we'll move on to the next lesson." Kuzan explained as he walked towards Garp and laid down to watch the three boys try and shift themselves into their element.</p><p>"I bet you guys I'll be the first one to do it!" Luffy said to his two brothers with a grin as he held up his right fist.</p><p>"You're on <em>little</em> brother." Sabo replied with a grin as Luffy pouted and stuck his tongue out at Sabo.</p><p>"I'll beat both of you, I am the <em>oldest</em> brother after all." Ace told them with a smirk as he ran off to the other side of the field to start trying. Sabo and Luffy both ran off in different directions to start practicing too.</p><p>Ace started by trying to force his whole body to ignite at the same time, though this method worked for his arms, torso and head he couldn't get his legs and feet to ignite at the same time as the rest of his body. Sabo tried a different method slowly working his way up from his hands he was able to turn his forearms, upper arms, head and torso into a swirling cloud of ash and was slowly working his way down to his waist and legs. Luffy was simply discharging electricity all over his body trying to make his body become the lightning, though simply discharging the lightning wasn't going to do that but it was helping Luffy with calling forth his element freely so his idea wasn't a total waste.</p><p>It was nearing dinner time before the boys had finally been able to transform into their elements completely. The three boys had only stopped for a short lunch around midday before going right back to training each boy still trying to beat the other two by being first to complete a full conversion. It was just an hour or so before dinner when Sabo had managed a complete transformation from head to feet. Ace and Luffy both grumbled about losing before trying to beat each other to second place. Ace accomplished his full conversion next by starting from his feet and changing his body as the flames climbed higher rather than trying to get the flames to burn downwards from his arms to his head and torso. Luffy, after seeing both his brothers beat him at the change got frustrated and accidentally transformed as he let his powers flow outward without restraint, this did have the rather amusing effect of sending Luffy across the entire length of the field as a flash of lightning which stopped only when Luffy hit the ground and the lightning dispersed into the ground.</p><p>"Well, you three finally got a full change down." Kuzan said with a yawn as he approached the three boys. "Of course it took you all far too long to make the change, but will work on speeding up your shifting during the next lesson." The Admiral finished before turning around and heading back towards Fuusha Village with Garp.</p><p>"Come on boys, time for dinner!" Garp called as he walked with Kuzan towards the village quickly followed by the three hungry children.</p><p>
  <strong>~The Next Day~</strong>
</p><p>"Alright, now that you three can change into your elements at will, we need to work on the speed you can change at." Kuzan drawled lazily while sitting in front of the three boys in the field again.</p><p>"Why do we need to be able to change as fast as you?" Sabo questioned as he held back a yawn of his own.</p><p>"One of a Logia user's greatest abilities is being able to dissolve or otherwise become intangible to most forms of attack by shifting into their element. If you can't change fast enough any attack could potentially be fatal." Kuzan explained to the three boys before Garp's leg quickly kicked the head off the tall Admiral's shoulders. All three boys cried out in shock at what Garp had done before they realized that there was no blood. In fact where Kuzan's head had been separated, the only thing the boy's saw was his neck made from ice. Kuzan's head rapidly reformed from the icy stump of his neck before returning to normal. "This is what I was talking about." Kuzan stated while the boys looked towards the severed head and found only small pieces of broken ice.</p><p>"That's so cool!" Luffy exclaimed with sparkling eyes.</p><p>"I understand now." Sabo stated with a nod.</p><p>"That could definitely be useful." Ace said looking between the shattered ice and Kuzan.</p><p>"Now to save me some time and trouble I'm going to incorporate your speed shifting training into your instinctive shifting training." Kuzan explained with a yawn.</p><p>"What's instinctive shifting?" Ace questioned with confusion at the new term.</p><p>"What I just demonstrated is known as instinctive shifting. By sensing an incoming attack you shift instinctively into your element to avoid the attack. If you sense the attack but can't change fast enough it's just a waste." Kuzan replied as he laid back into the grass. "Garp will help you three get this down over the next week or two." Kuzan stated as he put his sleep mask over his eyes.</p><p>"What's grandpa going to do?" Luffy questioned before a pebble smacked into his forehead at high speed sending the seven year old onto his butt. "Ow! That hurt!" Luffy exclaimed while Ace and Sabo looked around trying to figure out where the pebble came from.</p><p>"You should have shifted faster!" Garp called out from the other end of the field.</p><p>"Grandpa you jerk!" Luffy yelled out only to have another pebble smack him, this time in the stomach. Ace and Sabo both found themselves struck by pebbles as well causing all three boys to run around trying to dodge the pebbles they could barely see or hear before they were hit.</p><p>
  <strong>~Two Weeks Later~</strong>
</p><p>Sabo, Ace, and Luffy are walking through the field they've been using for their training for the last two weeks as dozens of pebbles and even some larger rocks fly through the air at them from multiple directions. The various stones simply pass through each boy without the boys seeming to notice. After several minutes of this the stones stop flying and the boys are approached by Kuzan and garp.</p><p>"Seems like you boys finally got the hang of instinctive shifting." Garp said with a grin while Sabo and Ace glared at him and Luffy had is customary large grin.</p><p>"Evil old man." Sabo muttered while glaring at Garp.</p><p>"Stupid jerk, thinks he's funny." Ace growled while increasing his glare. Both reactions only caused Garp to laugh at the two boys, while Kuzan looked on mildly amused.</p><p>"Now that you can instinctively shift and dodge attacks that you can see and hear coming we'll move on to the next lesson." Kuzan stated as he walked around the boys to get in front of them.</p><p>"What else is there to learn besides how to fight with our powers? Now that we can instinctive shift we're practically unbeatable right?" Ace questioned with his arms crossed. Kuzan launched a kick at the ten year old, at about ten percent of his actual combat speed, allowing Ace to see the incoming kick in time to shift. Kuzan's kick connected and sent Ace several feet backwards where the boy landed on his back.</p><p>"You were saying?" Kuzan asked with a serious look on his face.</p><p>"Ack! *cough* How did you *cough* hit me? I'm fire!" Ace questioned through a coughing fit as he tried to get air back into his lungs. Both Sabo and Luffy just stood in shock at seeing Ace get hit while he'd been able to shift.</p><p>"That's part of the next lesson." Kuzan explained with a yawn. "Logia users often feel invincible but they can be hit in a number of ways. For example an element that is contradictory to your own, like water to fire, or if your opponent can use Haki, like I just did against you."</p><p>"What's Haki?" Sabo asked the question all three boys were thinking.</p><p>"Haki is the force of your will and spirit. It can empower the body or a weapon with training. It is one of the only surefire ways to effectively combat Devil Fruit users." Garp explained as he flicked both Luffy and Sabo in the forehead.</p><p>"Ouch! Grandpa!" Luffy cried out as he held his forehead. Sabo kept quiet but still held his head in pain.</p><p>"Furthermore Haki can be divided into three categories. Busoshoku or Armament Haki, Kenbunshoku or Observation Haki, and Haoshoku or Conqueror's Haki. Haoshoku Haki can't be trained and occurs only in one in every one million people or so. But anybody can train and master Kenbunshoku or Busoshoku Haki, which we'll be teaching you the basics of. Once you've got the basics down the only thing that will let you get any better with Haki is experience." Garp explained before a grin spread across his face as he held up three blindfolds. "Training begins now!"</p><p>
  <strong>~One Month Later~</strong>
</p><p>"Luffy, I think I hate your Grandpa." Sabo said as the three surrogate brothers continued to spar with Garp while blindfolded and using Armament Haki to fight back instead of their Devil Fruit powers.</p><p>"Grandpa is kinda mean." Luffy agreed as he sensed a punch from Garp and leap back to dodge only to be kicked in the stomach by Garp's follow up attack.</p><p>"He's a stupid old man." Ace said as he launched a punch with his Armament Haki active, a vague transparent haze seeming to surround the ten year old's fist, Garp simply knocked the punch aside before trying to flick Ace in the forehead. Ace ducked backwards to dodge the flick while Sabo launched a kick at where he sensed Garp was going to move, only to get punched as Garp dodged the kick and counter attacked. Suddenly an alarm clock rang and all three boys dropped to the ground exhausted.</p><p>"Look at that, you boys lasted the whole sparring time again. That's seven days in a row now." Garp said happily with a smile while the boys took off their blindfolds.</p><p>"Slave driver." Ace muttered as he crawled towards the lunch basket Garp had brought with them this morning.</p><p>"Task master." Sabo grunted as he also tried to crawl towards the lunch basket.</p><p>"Food." Luffy called out weakly as he quickly crawled his way towards the basket.</p><p>After lunch Kuzan had the boys take a nap for an hour, supposedly so they would be well rested for the next stage of their training, though all three, plus Garp, knew it was because the Admiral was being lazy again. After the hour nap the boys did feel more relaxed and rested and promptly woke Kuzan up by nudging him repeatedly until the Admiral sat up and started explaining.</p><p>"Alright, alright the next stage of your training is to teach you how to fight effectively with your Devil Fruit powers. Just throwing your element around will only get you so far before someone with better technique takes you down. I'll demonstrate a few of my techniques and maybe you'll get some inspiration for your own techniques." Kuzan explained as he got up to show a few of his techniques to the boys. "Ice Block: Partisan." Kuzan said as three trident shaped pole arms formed from ice in front of him and were quickly launched towards one of the few large rocks near the edge of the field. The three projectiles smashed into the rock leaving behind large gouges where ever they struck the large stone.</p><p>"Wow!" Luffy said in awe as his eyes sparkled. Sabo and Ace couldn't help but agree; that attack had been awesome.</p><p>"Ice Block: Pheasant Beak." Kuzan announced as his entire right arm turned to ice and a large bird of ice formed and raced towards the same large rock. This time however the rock was completely obliterated by the Admiral's attack.</p><p>"Giant ice bird!" Luffy yelled happily his eyes practically glowing with excitement.</p><p>"What the heck! That was huge!" Ace and Sabo exclaimed at the same time. Both boys shocked by the amount of ice Kuzan could create in an instant and the power behind his technique.</p><p>"One more and then I'll let you try and come up with your own ideas for techniques." Kuzan stated as he walked over to a large tree at the edge of the field. He placed his hand on the tree's trunk before announcing his attack. "Ice Time." The large tree was quickly frozen solid as the boys watched on.</p><p>"Freaky, a tree-sicle." Ace said as the three brothers looked at the frozen tree.</p><p>"Do you think it tastes any good?" Luffy questioned while looking at the tree.</p><p>"Idiot." Sabo muttered to himself while face palming.</p><p>"Now, you three try and come up with some techniques of your own. Try and think of the attributes of your respective element while you come up with your moves." Kuzan instructed as he sat down away from the frozen tree.</p><p>"Oh! I know!" Luffy exclaimed channeling lightning around his arm. "Lightning Block: Pheasant Beak!" he yelled throwing his arm forward but only succeeding in sending a lightning bolt into the sky. "Aww, why didn't it work?" Luffy pouted as he looked at his hand.</p><p>"Hmm, let me try something." Ace said as he brought flames from his body in front of him. "Fire Block: Partisan!" he yelled but only succeeded in sending a wave of fire a few dozen feet in front of himself. "Ok, this is harder than it looks." Ace admitted.</p><p>"Boys, you can't just try and copy my techniques. My techniques are formed from ice, a solid element. Trying to solidify lightning or fire may take you quite a while considering neither are naturally solid, it might even be impossible." Kuzan explained from where he was sitting.</p><p>"So we don't have to say Fire Block or Ash Block to make techniques like yours work?" Sabo asked as he turned his left hand into ash watching the red-orange embers swirl inside the cloud.</p><p>"Of course not, I came up with Ice Block when I was younger and had only recently started developing my powers and techniques. It helped me focus and often led to having better results from my techniques. If you want to come up with something that will help you concentrate that's fine, hell I'd recommend it, but it should be something that helps you focus." Kuzan replied before yawning lightly.</p><p>"I see so something that helps me to focus." Sabo muttered while he began thinking deeply.</p><p>"I'll have to think about that for a while." Ace said as he started walking around slowly.</p><p>"I have no idea." Luffy commented with a large grin as both Sabo and Ace face palmed.</p><p>
  <strong>~The Next Day~</strong>
</p><p>"So what did you three come up with?" Kuzan asked from his position laid back on the ground.</p><p>"Me first! Me first!" Luffy said with a grin as he bounced around.</p><p>"Go ahead, Luffy." Kuzan replied which caused Luffy to grin even bigger.</p><p>"Goro Goro no Pistol!" Luffy exclaimed holding up his right hand like a gun his index and middle fingers extended. From the tips of Luffy's fingers a thin, but bright bolt of lightning shot forward and pierced the still frozen tree leaving a hole about an inch wide straight through the tree.</p><p>"Simple, but effective. Seems you've found what works for you, Luffy." Kuzan commented as Luffy was congratulated by his brothers.</p><p>"I'll go next." Ace said with a smirk. "Enkai: Hibashira!" Ace waved his arms around bringing forth large amounts of fire before launching a huge stream of fire directly into the air above him. The pillar of fire reached a height of fifty feet before it dispersed.</p><p>"Not bad, seems you need focus for larger attacks. Small ones seem to come to you much easier." Kuzan stated having seen Ace play with small balls of flame like they were toys when they took breaks from their training.</p><p>"Well, I guess it's my turn then." Sabo announced with his own grin. "Ash Make: Darts!" Sabo's hands both turned into large clouds of ash from which several dozen black spike-like darts were launched before stabbing into the ground in front of Sabo for at least thirty feet.</p><p>"That's also good, Sabo." Kuzan responded as he picked up one of the darts from the ground. "This thing feels like incredibly dense charcoal. So you compressed your ash together until it solidified?" Kuzan questioned while examining the dart.</p><p>"Yep, that's why I used Ash Make as my focus command. Turning my ash into objects is a lot different than when I use it freely as a large cloud or wave. So the word Make helps me focus on giving it a form." Sabo explained as he reformed his hands and returned them to normal.</p><p>"That was great!" Garp shouted from the edge of the field surprising everyone. "I knew you boys could do it! You'll all be great Marines one day!" he said with a laugh as he walked towards the group.</p><p>"I don't wanna be a Marine, Grandpa! I wanna be a pirate!" Luffy yelled back.</p><p>"Yeah, I'd rather do what I want than what I'm told." Ace replied with his arms crossed.</p><p>"I enjoy being free and doing what I like; besides Marines take orders from snooty nobles." Sabo commented with a frown.</p><p>"You'll all be Marines and like it!" Garp yelled back before calming down and turning to Kuzan. "Sengoku needs you back Kuzan, says he needs an Admiral's presence back at Headquarters for one of the monthly report and review meetings."</p><p>"Aww, man. Those are so boring. I was hoping to have a longer vacation." Kuzan replied before he turned and started walking with Garp back towards Fuusha Village.</p><p>
  <strong>~One Hour Later~</strong>
</p><p>"Well, looks like this is goodbye for now boys." Kuzan said as he stood before Garp's ship which would take both the Admiral and Vice-Admiral back to Marine Headquarters. "Keep practicing your skills and powers and you'll go pretty far in this world no matter what you decide to do."</p><p>"Sure thing, sensei." Luffy, Sabo and Ace replied together before looking towards the opposite bay, where all the resident's boats came and went from, when they heard someone scream. The reason for said scream was that the Sea King, known to the local people as 'The Lord of the Coast' was rising up from the water in the middle of the bay with a loud roar.</p><p>"Man, can't even get a peaceful send off from your home island can I Garp?" Kuzan asked rhetorically as he, Garp and the three boys walked towards the other bay's shoreline. Once the group arrived the Sea King turned to look towards them and let out another roar. "Here's one last thing I want you boys to think about when you get stronger." Kuzan said as he stepped forward and put his hand into the sea. "Every competent Devil Fruit user usually has one or two attacks that are so powerful they only use them when a situation calls for it." The Sea King was by now swimming quickly towards the group on the shore with its mouth of razor sharp teeth opened wide. "You three are a bit young to be able to bring out that much power yet, but I have no doubt that you all will be capable of it one day." Kuzan continued eve as the Sea King was getting closer and closer. "But for now I'll let you see the kind of technique and power I'm talking about." He finished with the Sea King no more than twenty feet away from him now. "Ice Age!" Kuzan exclaimed and in that instant everything froze.</p><p>"No way!" Ace said dumbfounded.</p><p>"Impossible!" Sabo commented with his eyes as wide as possible.</p><p>"So cool!" Luffy yelled as his eyes sparkled.</p><p>The Sea King, the ocean and even parts of the shore were completely frozen in place. The temperature had noticeably dropped several degrees and 'The Lord of the Coast' was frozen solid mid-lunge.</p><p>"Alright I guess we should set sail now." Kuzan said as he and Garp started walking back towards Garp's ship; leaving the boys to stare in awe at the level of power they could someday wield.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>So what did you, my faithful readers, think? Good? Bad? Let me know with a review. Also if you have something negative to say, be constructive about it, tell me how it can be improved don't just be an A-Hole.</strong>
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  <strong>ONE MORE THING!</strong>
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  <strong>Can some authors check out the challenges I have up on my profile? I only have two but I'd love to see a good author take one of them and make a nice story out of it. I know I'm not as super popular as some other authors on this site; but they put up some challenges and suddenly they have dozens of other authors taking them and I put up two that I feel are at least a little unique and I get zero response or reaction.</strong>
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  <strong>Come on guys, they're cool ideas I promise. Surely some talented author on this site can make something cool out of them?</strong>
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Meeting a Yonkou, Dreams are Made</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hello all and welcome to the next chapter of 'The Logia Brothers'. I apologize for the wait but life has been hectic for the last several months. I got laid off from one job spent a month or so looking for a new job, got a new job and was automatically forced to work double overtime, 60 hour weeks, for over a month found a better job went through the whole hiring process and quit the other job and now I have a week off from work before I start my new job. So yeah, not much time to write these last few months. </strong>
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  <strong>But I am happy to announce that I have a new chapter for you my loyal fans, it's time for the brothers to meet Shanks! Also I briefly go over the whole burning Grey Terminal thing but the brothers will mostly only see it from a distance because they don't enter the Goa Kingdom at all in this story so Sabo's father never sees him, therefore no sending Bluejam after the boys.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 3 – Meeting a Yonkou, Dreams are Made</strong>
</p><p>Almost two months had passed since Kuzan and Garp had left the three brothers to return to Navy Headquarters and we find the trio at Makino's Pub in the, once again, quiet town of Fuusha Village. Well not so quiet in the last few days, since a band of pirates under the command of "Red-Haired" Shanks, one of the Yonkou of the New World, had docked at Dawn Island. What would this infamous band of powerful pirates be doing in the East Blue of all places? They were partying wildly in the local tavern with the three brothers. At the bar of the tavern the three boys Luffy, Sabo, and Ace are sitting next to Shanks, the captain of the Red-Haired pirates. "Red-Haired" Shanks is a man of average height wearing a button down long-sleeved white shirt, black pants with a sash holding them up and sandals on his feet. There are three vertical scars over his left eye and a straw hat over his dark red hair, hence his nickname. The reason for the celebration was another successful adventure of the crew and finding a new temporary base of operations on Dawn Island.</p><p>"These guys are so cool!" Luffy exclaimed with his signature grin as looked at the pirates partying in the pub.</p><p>"They're definitely more fun than your Grandpa, Luffy." Sabo replied with his own grin as he downed his drink and set the empty cup on the bar.</p><p>"That doesn't take much." Ace commented as he shoved the last piece of his steak into his mouth and then turned around on his bar stool to look at the group of pirates.</p><p>"Glad you kids think so!" said Shanks with a grin before he chugged a bottle of sake, burping after he finished the bottle and then laughing like an idiot.</p><p>"I want to be a pirate too! Next time bring me out to sea!" exclaimed Luffy in the voice of a child ready for an adventure.</p><p>"You can't handle being a pirate! Being unable to swim is a pirate's greatest weakness!" retorted Shanks while sporting a knowing smile on his face, thinking back to when he first wanted to become a pirate.</p><p>Luffy, with a ticked off look on his face shot back, "As long as I stay on the ship I'd be fine! Besides my fighting is really good too! I've been training my whole life and my punch is stronger than a pistol!" Luffy finished with a proud grin on his face.</p><p>"He's not wrong, you know." Sabo spoke up as he looked towards Shanks, "All three of us were trained into the ground by Luffy's Grandpa."</p><p>"I doubt there's much worse out on the sea than that old jerk." Ace agreed as he scowled at the memory of Garp's training.</p><p>Shanks seemed skeptical at all three of the boy's high opinion of themselves, and his crew wasn't helping the matter by telling them how awesome the life of a pirate is. Luffy listened enthusiastically, his eagerness only increasing as the pirates continued to talk. Shanks tried to act as the voice of reason by telling the brothers that they were still too young to live the life of a pirate, which Luffy heatedly denied while Ace and Sabo scowled at the captain for looking down on them.</p><p>"Don't be mad, here have some juice," Shanks said with a mischievous smile. Luffy thanked the pirate and drank the juice down with his usual child-like enthusiasm. As soon as Luffy was done with the juice Shanks could no longer hold it in and burst out laughing, "You really are a kid! That's too funny! What kind of pirate drinks juice?" He gasped out between bouts of laughter.</p><p>"That was a dirty trick!" Luffy cried indignantly as he watched Shanks laugh at his expense. Sabo and Ace simply sighed at their little brother's simple-mindedness. Luffy left the bar table in a huff muttering about the unfairness of it all when he noticed Shanks' first mate, Ben Beckman, make a come here motion while lighting up a cigarette.</p><p>"Luffy, while I understand that you're upset, you should try to understand the captain's feelings," the first mate said between puffs of smoke. Seeing the small boy's confused expression, Ben explained, "While the captain knows that being a pirate is interesting, he also knows that the life of a pirate is hard and very dangerous. You understand? He's not purposely teasing your ambitions of being a pirate."</p><p>"I don't understand!" Luffy replied in irritation. "Shanks just takes me for an idiot," Looking in said man's direction, Luffy noticed Shanks stifling his giggles about the prank he just pulled. "See?!" Luffy shouted while pointing an accusing finger in Shanks' direction.</p><p>'The kid might have a point.' Ben thought with a sweat drop seeing his captain still chuckling at his prank.</p><p>A distraction from the prank came when Makino asked Luffy if he wanted something to eat. Never one to pass down food, especially food of the meat variety, like the steak Makino was presenting Luffy eagerly plopped down next to Shanks and dug in to the plate of meat. Luffy then asked how long the pirates would be staying and, after finding out they would be staying for the rest of the year, promised Shanks that he would convince him to take him along by that time. Ace and Sabo both laughed at their brother's determination to join Shanks on an adventure causing Luffy to yell at them, which only made his older brothers laugh harder. Suddenly the tavern's door was kicked open by a man who looked like one of the dirtier mountain bandits from around Mt. Corvo. Eyeing the pirates seated around the bar, the obvious bandit made a snarky comment on the pirates' appearances despite the fact that he was obviously outnumbered fifty to one against superior opponents. Everyone was looking at the poor excuse for a bandit wondering what he thought he would gain by making such an entrance. The man walked up to the bar and introduced himself as Higuma and then demanded ten barrels of sake for him and his men. When Makino told him that her supply of sake was sold out, the bandit leader frowned and looked around the room.</p><p>"Oh, that's strange, what are they drinking then? Is it water?" Higuma asked with a scowl.</p><p>"No it's sake, but it's all we had." Makino explained to the bandit.</p><p>"Sorry about that," said Shanks trying to diffuse the situation. "It seems like we finished off all the sake here. But, if you don't mind, why don't you take the last bottle?" He offered while holding up the unopened bottle of sake. Higuma promptly smashed the bottle sending sake splashing all over the pirate captain, much to the shock of Luffy, Ace, Sabo and the other's present in the bar. Most likely they were shocked at the audacity of the bandit insulting someone who so far outclassed him.</p><p>Higuma went into a small rant on how he was the top fugitive around the area and how his head was worth 8,000,000 Beri. Shanks simply ignored the man in favor of cleaning up the newly created mess on the floor. Higuma, seeing that he was being ignored unsheathed his sword and proceeded to smash all the glassware on the bar right on top of Shanks. With a few more condescending words, the bandit leader stormed out of the tavern. As Makino checked on Shanks to see if he was all right, which he assured that he was, the rest of the pirate crew started cracking jokes on what just happened, with Shanks joining in on the laughter. The only people not laughing, however, were Luffy, Sabo and Ace.</p><p>"Why are you laughing?" Luffy shouted while looking angry. Seeing Shanks' puzzled expression, Luffy continued, "That was disgraceful! Why didn't you fight him?! So what if they have more people? Who laughs after getting picked on? You're not a man and not a pirate either!"</p><p>Shanks paused for a moment before saying, "Look Luffy, I know how you feel, but it's just a bottle of sake. There's nothing to get worked up about."</p><p>"You still didn't have to take that." Sabo stated with a frown as he looked between Shanks and Luffy.</p><p>"Yeah, you could have sent him running with his tail between his legs at least. You wouldn't have even had to throw a punch." Ace commented with a scowl while looking at the doors Higuma had left through. Luffy didn't like Shanks' answer and was heading towards the door in a huff.</p><p>"Come on, don't go Luffy…" Shanks sighed as he reached out to touch Luffy's shoulder. Shanks quickly pulled his hand back with a grimace when he received a painful shock. All the pirates in the bar were staring at Luffy in surprise as sparks of electricity danced around the boy's body. "Luffy what is this?" Shanks asked, though he had a very good idea already.</p><p>"Why should I tell you, you're just a coward." Luffy replied with a grumble as he turned away from Shanks.</p><p>"Luffy, did you eat a fruit that looked sort of like this?" Lucky Roo asked as he held up an opened treasure chest that had a purple fruit with black swirl-like markings on it resting inside.</p><p>"Yeah he did, but he wasn't the only one." Ace spoke up as he turned his hand into flames and Sabo turned his hand into a swirling cloud of ash.</p><p>"All three of you, you've all eaten of the Devil Fruit?" Shanks questioned the brothers as Ace and Sabo's hand returned to normal and sparks of electricity stopped jumping off of Luffy's body.</p><p>"So what if we did? We've already been trained in how to use them." Sabo replied as he and Ace moved to stand beside Luffy.</p><p>"Nothing bad," Shanks replied with a smile. "It's just really rare to encounter a Devil Fruit in the East Blue, much less three of them." He explained as he went to sit back down at the bar.</p><p>"Luffy's grandpa said the same thing." Sabo said as he and Ace pulled Luffy back towards the bar and all three sat back down on their bar stools.</p><p>"What are you guys going to do with the one you have?" Ace questioned while looking at the chest containing the Devil Fruit that Lucky Roo had set on the end of the bar.</p><p>"Not sure yet," Shanks replied as he looked back at the boys. "We could save it and see if a future nakama wants to eat it. Or we could sell it for a lot of money." He explained with a look towards the chest.</p><p>"How much is a Devil Fruit worth?" Sabo asked as he looked at the chest as well.</p><p>"Any Devil Fruit can easily sell for 100,000,000 Beri even if you don't know what power it holds. There are always buyers hoping to get an incredible power from an unknown fruit. But any fruit that has been identified can easily be sold for 150,000,000 Beri or more depending on which one it is." Shanks explained as he patted the lid of the closed treasure chest.</p><p>"Is that enough money to buy a life-size bronze statue of me?" Luffy questioned with sparkles in his eyes and a big grin on his face. Both Ace and Sabo sighed at their brother's stupid idea, though Luffy didn't really have a grasp of the value of money, maybe it was something Makino could teach him the two brothers thought as Shanks and the rest of the pirates laughed at Luffy's question.</p><p>"Luffy with 150,000,000 Beri you could melt the coins down and make a solid gold statue of yourself." Shanks laughed as he smacked the bar top repeatedly. "Though the World Government would get pissed if they found out you melted down their currency."</p><p>"Awesome!" Luffy responded his eyes sparkling even more at the thought of a solid gold statue.</p><p>"So which Devil Fruit do you have in the chest?" Ace asked after all the pirates had stopped laughing.</p><p>"This is the Gomu Gomu no Mi, whoever eats it has their body gain all of the properties of rubber. They'd be able to stretch, twist, expand, and probably be resistant to electricity like Luffy's power." Shanks replied as he drank a glass of water Makino had placed down for him.</p><p>"I like my power better." Ace commented as he lit his index finger on fire for a moment before putting it back out.</p><p>The party quickly resumed with the three brothers showing off small tricks they could do with their powers much to the enjoyment of the pirates. The party lasted until late in the evening with many of the pirates passing out on the floor of the pub for the night. Ace, Sabo and Luffy were taken to the back and put into a makeshift bed by Makino so they'd be comfortable during the night.</p><p>
  <strong>~Time Skip – A few months later~</strong>
</p><p>Luffy, Ace, and Sabo were having lunch at Makino's pub after practicing with their Haki and Devil Fruit powers all morning when a familiar and unwanted person made their entrance into the pub.</p><p>"Well, looks like the pirates aren't here this time. Place smells better without them at least." Higuma muttered as he led his men into the pub and sat down at a table. "Hey, woman, get us sake and keep it coming." He shouted as Makino quickly moved to start serving drinks. After several rounds of booze Higuma started blathering on about Shanks and his crew calling them cowards and fools. During this time Ace and Sabo had to restrain Luffy from attacking the bandits.</p><p>"Hey woman, why don't you show us some skin?" questioned a bandit as Makino walked past him to refill Higuma's glass. All the other bandits started cheering at the thought of seeing the pretty bartender's body.</p><p>"That's not a bad idea." Higuma agreed with a laugh as Makino poured his drink with a barely suppressed scowl.</p><p>"That's enough out of all of you." Sabo growled his Haki coming forth and projected towards the bandits causing them to start to sweat in fear.</p><p>"Leave and never come back." Ace added as he let his Haki loose as well. All the bandits started to back away from the two boys at the counter more afraid than they'd ever been before and not able to understand why.</p><p>"Oh, and who is going to make us? You kids?" Higuma laughed as he smacked Makino's ass causing the bartender to growl in anger.</p><p>"You jerk!" Luffy yelled as in the blink of an eye he'd crossed the distance between the bar and Higuma's table and punched the bandit so hard he flew out the front door and landed in the street. The other bandits stared in shock at the sight of their leader being sent flying by a kid before quickly running out of the pub and heading back towards the mountains screaming about monster kids.</p><p>"You little brat!" Higuma yelled at Luffy as the boy walked out of the bar and into the street to face the bandit leader. Ace and Sabo stood in the doorway of the pub to watch their little brother beat the bandit into the dirt.</p><p>"I'll make you pay for what you did to Makino you jerk." Luffy growled as he walked towards Higuma.</p><p>"Like hell you will you little bastard!" Higuma replied as he sent a kick at the young boy. Luffy's Observation Haki let him see the move coming before Higuma had even started the motion so he moved back a half step causing the kick to miss. "What?" Higuma questioned when his kick failed to hit the boy. He quickly threw a punch only for Luffy to dodge his fist by an inch. Higuma tried several more punches and kicks all of which Luffy dodged with the smallest of movements causing the bandit leader to become angrier. "Stay still damn it!" Higuma yelled as he reached for his sword.</p><p>"Ok." Luffy responded as Higuma grabbed his sword and slashed at Luffy's neck. The blade passed completely through Luffy's neck leaving behind a trail of sparks which confused Higuma, until he felt the horrible shock of several hundred thousand volts of electricity surge through his body as his steel blade acted as a conductor for Luffy's lightning. Higuma collapsed while twitching in agony. "Never show your face in Fuusha Village again, jerk!" Luffy yelled before kicking Higuma down the road several feet closer to the edge of the village. Higuma weakly started to crawl away from the village in terror of the child that couldn't possibly be human in his mind.</p><p>"Well I guess this explains why no one came down to the docks to greet us." Shanks said as everyone turned to look at the pirate captain and his crew walking towards the bar.</p><p>"Shanks! You guys are back." Luffy called out with a grin as he waved to his friend. Ace and Sabo smiled as well from the doorway of the bar along with Makino.</p><p>"That was very impressive Luffy." Shanks complimented the young boy as they walked into Makino's pub together. "Protecting a friend is the best reason to fight someone else. I never let someone get away with hurting a friend of mine. I'm glad to see you're the same way." Shanks said with a grin which got Luffy to smile widely at the pirate captain.</p><p>
  <strong>~A few days later~</strong>
</p><p>"So you guys are leaving now?" Luffy questioned as he watched Shanks's crew prepare their ship for departure.</p><p>"Yeah, we've been here a while so it's time to move back to the Grand Line and the adventures there." Shanks responded as he watched his subordinates work. "Aren't you gonna beg me to take you along again?" Shanks asked with a grin at the boy.</p><p>"Nope, Ace and Sabo told me it would be cooler if I was the captain of my own crew and made a crew better than yours." Luffy replied with a smile.</p><p>"Ha! Like we'd take you with us anyway. You'll have to get a lot better to beat us Luffy." Shanks laughed as he stuck his tongue out at Luffy.</p><p>"Oh yeah! You'll see! Just you wait! I'll gather the best crew ever! We'll beat you guys and then I'll find the One Piece! Then I'll be King of the Pirates!" Luffy yelled out loud causing laughter and cheers to erupt from Shank's crew.</p><p>"Pirate King, huh? Well in that case, why don't you keep this hat safe for me?" Shanks said as he took off his straw hat and put it on Luffy's head. "This hat means a lot to me, promise that you'll give it back to me someday…when you've become a great pirate." Luffy simply nodded as a few tears fell from his eyes. Within the next few minutes Shanks and the Red-Haired Pirates set sail from Dawn Island and Fuusha Village heading back towards the Grand Line.</p><p>"Don't be sad Luffy. You'll see them again someday." Sabo consoled his younger brother as they watched Shank's ship disappear over the horizon.</p><p>"Yeah, we should probably thank him properly for giving you something so important to him. Maybe Makino can teach us those manners and stuff that she says we need." Ace said as he rubbed his chin in thought.</p><p>"Shishishishishi! Yeah, I'm definitely going to be King of the Pirates! Then I'll return this hat to Shanks!" Luffy laughed as the three brothers headed back to their hideout near Dadan's place to hang out.</p><p>
  <strong>~A month later~</strong>
</p><p>Luffy, Sabo and Ace stood on top of a hill looking over the area known as Grey Terminal. Or at the very least whatever parts of it that weren't on fire yet. Someone had set fire to the entire Grey Terminal area tonight and the three boys could barely hear people yelling over the roar of the flames.</p><p>"What's going on?" Luffy yelled as the brothers watched the fire burn.</p><p>"I don't know Luffy. But this definitely wasn't an accident." Ace replied with a grimace as the flames spread farther.</p><p>"This is probably the work of the nobles in Goa. They've always despised the people who live in Grey Terminal." Sabo ground out through gritted teeth.</p><p>"Hey, look, there's a ship in the cove." Luffy pointed out as a large ship docked near the shore. Not a minute later a small bright white light left the deck of the ship and a huge blast of air cleared out a large space at the edge of Grey Terminal completely removing the flames from that area.</p><p>"What in the hell?" Ace muttered in shock at seeing the display of power. Beside him Luffy and Sabo were also too shocked to speak. Several minutes later the large ship departed from the shore and disappeared into the darkness of the night.</p><p>"What was that about exactly?" Sabo wondered out loud as Luffy and Ace shrugged unable to answer their brother's question.</p><p>"We should get back to Dadan's place. There isn't anything we can do here." Ace said before heading back into the forest towards Dadan's home. Luffy and Sabo stared at the large fire for a moment longer before following after Ace.</p><p>After a week had passed since the burning of Grey Terminal, the three brothers had gone exploring the area again. Finding many survivors the three learned that the fire was caused by the nobles of Goa wanting to remove all the trash from their kingdom in an effort to look good for the visiting Celestial Dragons. Sabo could only grit his teeth in anger at being proven correct, this was the kind of thing that made him run away from his life as a noble's son. He truly despised how the nobles looked down on other human beings as mere trash. They also found out that it was the Revolutionary Army that had saved the majority of the people from burning to death in the fire. When Sabo heard about what the Revolutionary Army stood for and their goal he was determined to one day join them and help them change the world.</p><p>Later that night back at Dadan's compound Luffy brought up a fact that he thought was important.</p><p>"Ace, you need a hat!" Luffy stated with finality, causing both of his brothers to look at him oddly.</p><p>"Why do I need a hat, Luffy?" Ace questioned while Sabo looked between his two brothers.</p><p>"Because I have a hat and Sabo has a hat, you're the only one without one." Luffy said with a completely serious face. Sabo burst out laughing while Ace simply chuckled at Luffy's statement.</p><p>"Fine, I'll look for a hat I like all right?" Ace replied with a grin causing both Luffy and Sabo to laugh at the thought of all three of them wearing hats all the time. "Maybe something in orange?" Ace pondered causing a new wave of laughter to come from his two brothers.</p><p>
  <strong>-End chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>There we go. So how was it? Like it? Hate it? Let me know with your review. I hope to have the next chapter out much sooner than in the past. I have a completely original idea I plan to implement in the next chapter before moving on to the canon events in chapter 5 so look forward to it.</strong>
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  <strong>ONE MORE THING!</strong>
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  <strong>The awesome author Jarek Gray has taken up my Digimon challenge. So go read his story 'Consequences of Delay' and leave him lots of great reviews. Also try and spread my challenges around to other authors you guys. They would be amazing stories to read and I'm sure all my fans would like to see the ideas brought to life.</strong>
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  <strong>Until next time, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. The Romance Dawn</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hello friends and fans, Kairomaru is here with a new chapter of the Logia Brothers! This chapter we see Luffy set out on his adventure and learn what Ace and Sabo have done since they both left three years ago. </strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 4 – The Romance Dawn</strong>
</p><p>Ten years had passed since the Red-Haired Pirates had set sail for the last time. The sleepy village of Fuusha hadn't changed much in that time. There were periods of time where it was quieter than usual, mostly when Luffy, Ace and Sabo were in the mountains with Dadan and her bandits, but beyond that, Shanks and his crew wouldn’t have noticed a difference. But Shanks and the Red-Haired Pirates never had returned, keeping to Shanks’ promise of only meeting Luffy again when the kid had made it big. But today was the day Luffy was finally going to set out on his grand pirate adventure!</p><p>"There he goes!" Makino waved joyfully at the rapidly shrinking boat on the horizon. She had a wide grin to contrast with Woopslap's scowl, "Looks like he finally left like he wanted! We're going to miss him..."</p><p>The old mayor growled, "He's going to ruin this town's reputation!" Makino rolled her eyes as she turned to go back to her bar in response.</p><p>Out on the sea, Luffy was lazily lounging on his tiny little dinghy. He was wearing his treasured straw hat, an open, red cardigan with flared sleeves exposing his chest, and some blue jean shorts with cuffs. Luffy had grown well in the ten years since he'd last seen his hero. He was as tall as his brothers had been the last time he'd seen them at an even six foot. He wasn't quite as muscular though, being a little bit slimmer than Ace and Sabo. "Ah, the weather sure is great today!" The new pirate exclaimed cheerfully as he spun his hat on his fingertip.</p><p>But the water bubbling nearby ruined the serene peace of the open ocean. "Huh?" Luffy opened an eye and plopped his straw hat back onto his head before grinning, "Hey, you're pretty big." What rose up from the ocean was a large Sea King which had terrified the many smaller vessels around Fuusha for the last few years. "So, you're the jerk that moved in after Kuzan froze the Lord of the Coast, huh?" The Sea King rose from the ocean, water dripping from its eel-like form. It snarled and started racing towards Luffy and his dinghy; the Lightning Man grinned as he stood up and faced the charging beast.</p><p>Luffy raised his arm and extended two fingers forming the classic ‘gun’ shape and aimed it towards the sea beast, "Goro Goro no Pistol!" It happened in a flash, literally. One moment the Sea King was charging towards Luffy and the next a blinding light was passed through the air. The water crackled as it instantly began to produce ozone with the passing of the electrical beam. The Sea King didn't even have time to try and evade before the energy was upon it and piercing straight through its skull. It wobbled for a moment with a smoking, cauterized hole visible through its head before it collapsed to the water and began sinking.</p><p>Luffy grinned widely, "Shishishi…How was that, you stupid fish!" His hat was shadowing his eyes as he raised the brim with one finger to watch the Sea King sink beneath the waves. He collapsed back down lazily before crossing his arms behind his head and started lounging totally carefree, "Well, before I head to the Grand Line…" He raised his arms into the air, "I’ll need some good friends!" he laughed loudly, "And then we'll get a ship and a flag! Then I'll become King of the Pirates!"</p><p>The next day, Luffy again had a giant grin on his face, "Man, what great weather again!" he cheered, "Who would have thought I'd get into such a problem on such a great day!" And indeed, the absolutely massive, whirling spiral of water sucking in his tiny boat could certainly be described as a 'problem'. "Man, what a huge whirlpool; that was careless of me." His grin hadn't even dropped an inch, as if he was just talking about the nice weather and not the huge death spiral. "Heh and I can't even swim!" His face finally changed, a look of sudden recognition appearing, "Wait, it wouldn't matter even if I could swim!"</p><p>And then the whirlpool swallowed the boat.</p><p>Somewhat far away, a large ship sat in the gently rolling waves. A manicured hand with pearls around the wrist was seen running a finger across the railing. "What's this?" A dangerous, rough sounding female voice was heard asking. Instantly, all of the men on the ship froze in fear, "What is all this dust?" She asked the shivering men.</p><p>"Ah, I'm so sorry, Lady Alvida! I thought I had already cleaned the entire deck! I'll clean it again! So please don't…"</p><p>"Don't what?" She questioned turning around.</p><p>"Please don't hit me with your ma…" the man tried to say before he was cut off with a loud thud.</p><p>The iron mace of Alvida crashed down onto the man's skull and crushed it. The pirate collapsed like a puppet with his strings cut and crashed to the deck. He didn't move again.</p><p>"Coby!" Alvida roared as she slowly turned around. The woman was very obese. She took up enough space for five men, and she carried around a massive, hulking slab of iron she called a mace. She was a wearing a pink plaid shirt that was stretched taut over her frame, an equally tight pair of greying pants and a blue Captain's coat. She had a white, red-plumed cowgirl hat and was covered in gaudy looking jewelry. She had a flintlock tied to her by a purple sash to finish off the pirate look. All in all, she wasn’t what most would call attractive, to say the least.</p><p>The 'Coby' she was yelling for was a chubby, dorky looking boy with a pink bowl-cut. "Y-yes Lady Alvida?"</p><p>"Who is the most beautiful woman in the entire sea?" She asked threateningly.</p><p>"A-ah, that would o-of course be y-you, Lady Alvida!" Coby shakily answered. Though internally he thought nothing could be farther from the truth.</p><p>"That's right!" The large woman roared, "And because of it, I don't want a single dirty thing on my entire ship! I don't want to see even a single speck of dust!" She slowly turned to him again, "The only reason you're still alive is because you're a decent navigator." She snarled at the terrified boy.</p><p>"O-of course, Lady Alvida!" He cried piteously, not allowing any tears to escape.</p><p>"Other than that, you're entirely worthless! Now, clean my shoes!" Alvida demanded and thrust her large leg at the boy.</p><p>"Yes, Lady Alvida." Coby nodded. After a few minutes of cleaning, he got a boot to the face.</p><p>"That's enough, trash!" Alvida snarled, "Go clean the wash room!" And with that, she lost interest in the cowardly boy.</p><p>"Haha, I'll be on my way, Lady Alvida!" As they all left him, his face turned down as he finally allowed a tear to escape.</p><p>
  <strong>-A Few Hours Later-</strong>
</p><p>Two sailors were lazily slumped over one of the railings of the cruise ship they were working on. They were just relaxing and looking out at the whirlpool they were passing by. The seagulls were cawing; it was calm and peaceful, other than the swirling hole in the ocean. "Huh?" Their attention was grabbed by a barrel hitting the side of the ship. The two sailors grinned at each other and quickly grabbed a rope with a claw on it to hook the barrel. They each took turns trying to nail the barrel and failed on the first four attempts. The next sailor spun it mightily over his head and flung it downward with a roar of, "Got it!"</p><p>But the claw was way off mark.</p><p>The other sailor laughed at his friend's ongoing misfortune, "Three strikes! You’re out!"</p><p>Inside the opulent ship, a beautiful orange-haired woman wearing a nice, beige dress was staring out the window with her chin in her palm. Violin music was being played by the live band. The Captain was currently reassuring one of the passengers that a whirlpool of the size they were passing wasn't even a worry to the ship. One young man came up to the orange-haired woman and asked for a dance, which she accepted with a smile.</p><p>Outside, the men finally snagged the barrel with the claw and hauled it onto the ship. "Awesome! This thing is heavy! Maybe it’s full of booze!" The larger sailor beamed.</p><p>Their merriment was cut short by a horrified gasp from the sailor up in the crow's nest. "P- PIRATES! It's a Pirate ship! Enemy raid! Enemy raid!" The sailors gasped and ran off inside to alert the Captain of the incoming raiders.</p><p>The Pirate ship, which had been painted pink of all colors, had a large red heart on the main sail, which was coming unfurled. Smoke erupted from the pink pirate ship, as three large cannon balls flew towards the cruise ship. After a few seconds of flight they finally struck, all going wide of their target. Large geysers of water blew into the air and shook the cruise ship terribly.</p><p>Inside, all of the passengers were screaming, panicking and running around frantically, all of course, except one. The orange-haired woman had widened her stance to keep her balance and had her arms out to stabilize herself. Slowly, a wide smirk formed on her lips.</p><p>On the enemy Pirate ship, Alvida was smirking as they finally scored a direct hit and broke the dolphin figurehead at the front of the ship. "Coby! Who is the most beautiful woman in the entire sea?"</p><p>"Y-you are of course, Lady Alvida." Coby stuttered.</p><p>She laughed hoarsely, "Well done." Coby stammered his thanks.</p><p>"This will be our first good haul in a while." One of the men licked his lips.</p><p>She grinned wider, "Rough them up good boys! Show them the terror of Lady Alvida!" The ship turned slightly and fired with its forward-facing cannon, striking a direct hit on the main mast of the cruise ship.</p><p>On the ship, the barrel the sailors had hauled in rolled down some steps and into the holds, finally rolling through an open door before stopping. Elsewhere on the ship, the orange-haired woman was running with an irritated grimace on her face. She really didn't want to damage her dress, so she was being forced to hold up the hem. She reached the door and broke out, turning right only to shiver and yelp as the much smaller Pirate ship pulled up alongside the cruise ship. She turned tail and ran back into the ship, as the pirates threw their hooks and boarded the ship.</p><p>"What do you think you're doing, Coby?" Alvida noticed the boy shaking like a leaf and snarled at him for his hesitation.</p><p>"I-I'm not really good at this." Coby stammered at his captor.</p><p>Alvida snarled and booted him in the behind, "Don't back talk me! Get your ass into gear!"</p><p>Coby flew onto the deck of the ship and landed face-first into one of the walls. He slumped to the floor and began sniveling. Alvida followed with her mace held high, terrifying Coby with her large jump and the fact that she was going to hit him. He screamed like a little girl and scrambled out of the way, allowing Alvida and her mace to plow right through the wall. Smoke, dust and wood chips flew through the air for a few moments, before revealing a dazed Alvida sitting there.</p><p>One of the Pirates grinned menacingly at the passengers, "We won't be taking your lives today, but we will take all your valuables. So start handing them over."</p><p>Alvida shook herself and wandered over, "Anyone who argues takes a nice swim in that whirlpool." Inside the ship, their raucous laughter was all the orange-haired woman could hear. She smirked and threw her fancy dress off, revealing another outfit underneath. A tight blue shirt, loose black pants with a red sash, and a black bandana covering her orange hair.</p><p>A few minutes later, Coby was checking about the ship in a frightened manner when he came upon a room with an open door, "H-hello?" He poked his head in slowly. There was no one in the room. He sighed in relief as he entered, before taking note of the large barrel that had knocked a bunch of stuff over off to one side. "Man, what a large barrel…" the pink-haired boy mused.</p><p>Outside, the orange-haired woman had used one of the hook ropes the pirates had left behind to zip line over and board the ugly pirate ship. She swiftly moved to a door and looked around several times before reaching for the doorknob. Before she had even touched it, it sprang open and startled her greatly. She sprang back and took up a weird pose as the pirate looked her over. "Hey, who are you? I don't think I've seen you before." The pirate leered at her with a growing grin as he leaned closer. She chuckled lightly before her weird pose turned into a strong kick.</p><p>She planted her foot as hard as she could right between the man's legs. He would have let out a high-pitched squeal if he hadn't immediately choked on his tongue. Instead, he ended up collapsed on the deck, unconsciously holding his damaged groin. The orangette smiled brightly and made her way into the ship after stuffing the body in an out of the way corner.</p><p>Below deck on the cruise ship, Coby was struggling to move the barrel, rolling it over to the door. "Hey, what are you sneaking around for Coby?" one of the other pirates questioned from behind him with a grin, scaring the boy.</p><p>"Ah! I was just rolling this over to the ship! It's pretty heavy!" Coby exclaimed.</p><p>The pirate grinned, "Heavy eh? That's good. Must be full of booze." He hauled it upright, "And I was just getting thirsty." He licked his lips.</p><p>"We can't!" Coby yelled in shock, "Lady Alvida will kill us!"</p><p>The pirate sneered as he raised his fist, "Well as long as you don't tell, she doesn't have to know! You just need to keep your mouth shut!" He swung downward with a hard punch to break through the top of the barrel.</p><p>But it wasn't his fist that broke through. Instead, a pair of fists burst upward right through the lid, one of which socked him in the jaw as a boy wearing a straw hat and a huge grin came up yawning, "Man, what a great nap! I slept great!" The thud of the pirate hitting the floor drew the young man’s attention, "Huh?" He looked over to the unconscious man before looking owlishly at the other two pirates that were staring at him in shock, "Who are you guys?"</p><p>The two sprang forward with shark teeth and roared at him, "Who the hell are you?!"</p><p>Luffy ignored them as he stepped out of the barrel, "That guy is going to catch a cold if he sleeps on the floor, you know?"</p><p>Their eyes bugged out, "You put him there!" They both drew swords, and Luffy looked at them with a confused look, "Do you even know who you're messing with punk? We're pirates!"</p><p>Luffy simply ignored them, turning to Coby, "Hey, I'm hungry. You guys have any food?"</p><p>The pirate's eyes bulged out even more, "Listen when people are talking!" They both raised their swords in the air, "You damn brat!" They swung, eager to have their blades taste flesh. Coby covered his eyes with his hands. The sound of blades hitting something was followed by two distinct thunks.</p><p>Coby slowly uncovered his eyes, steadying himself for the horrible sight he would no doubt witness. He gasped in shock and then started to stare. The boy's right arm was pointing left with a closed fist. The two swords the pirates had drawn were each broken with their tips stuck in the floorboards. But the pirates? They’d gotten off worse than their swords.</p><p>They were both embedded up to their waists in the walls on the far side of the room, legs hanging limply from their holes. Coby tried to speak, "You…what…how?" he stuttered, "Who are you?"</p><p>"Eh?" Luffy turned to him, "I'm Monkey D. Luffy. Nice to meet ya." He grinned.</p><p>Coby shook himself, "You have to hurry! They're bound to wake up soon and if they come back with their friends you're dead! There's over thirty of them!"</p><p>"Nah, I'm hungry. Got any food?" Luffy shrugged before picking at his nose with a pinky.</p><p>Coby only gaped. "How can you be so carefree? They're pirates!"</p><p>"So? I'm a pirate too." Luffy grinned at Coby's horrified face, "I only just started out though. I was just setting sail for the first time when I accidently got caught in a whirlpool. Shishishi." he laughed, before beginning to sniff at the air.</p><p>Luffy started walking forward so Coby grabbed him, trying to haul him away, "No not that way! There are dozens of them! You have to get out!" But Luffy didn't even slow his stride as he dragged the pink-haired boy, dragging feet and all, through the nearest doorway. He grinned widely and dove down towards the food in the room. Coby sighed as he noticed they were fairly well hidden down here, "Actually, this room isn't that bad. They might not find us here." Luffy still wasn't paying attention. He was too busy stuffing his face full of food. "You're Luffy, right? I'm Coby." He started walking down the steps, "That was incredible what you just did. How did you do it?"</p><p>Luffy turned around as Coby reached him, "These are great!" he exclaimed holding up an apple while completely ignoring Coby's question. He turned back around and continued to eat, "Is this a pirate ship?"</p><p>"No, this is a cruise ship the Alvida Pirates are raiding." Coby explained as he sat beside Luffy.</p><p>Luffy paused for a moment, before continuing to stuff his face. "Are there any boats on board? I kind of lost mine in that whirlpool so I need a new one. That sure was a surprise though. I never even saw it coming since it had been such a nice day. Shishishi." He chuckled around the food in his mouth.</p><p>"There should be. All ships have life boats, right?" Coby replied with a shaky smile as he watched the glutton eat.</p><p>"So you one of these Pirates?" Luffy asked.</p><p>Coby stiffened before trying to explain his situation, "Not exactly. I wandered onto a boat to go fishing." He looked down, "But it turns out that it was a dinghy belonging to Lady Alvida’s ship. It's been two years since then." He held onto his knees, "They made me a cabin boy in exchange for my life." Coby finished morosely.</p><p>It was silent for a moment, before Luffy started to chuckle, "You're kind of an idiot. Who just walks onto a pirate dinghy?" It seemed as if a huge weight suddenly appeared on Coby's shoulders as he sagged down in depression.</p><p>"You're brutally honest." The pink-haired boy whined.</p><p>"Well if you hate it and you want to leave, just leave." Luffy replied as he stretched his back out, a couple pops being heard.</p><p>"I-I couldn’t, can't! No way! No way! Just thinking of Lady Alvida finding out terrifies me! I'm too scared!" Coby stammered even at the thought of doing so. Just this morning he'd seen what Alvida’s mace could do.</p><p>"You're a coward too?" Luffy laughed, blowing yet another hole into Coby's self-esteem. "Man, I hate guys like you!"</p><p>Tears streamed down Coby's face, and it almost looked like he was about to give up on life. He drew himself up and bowed forward morosely, "Yeah, you're right. I'm a coward. If only I had the courage to be like you and drift in a barrel…" He sighed, "There's something I want to do too…hey…Luffy? What compelled you to go out to sea?"</p><p>Luffy grinned and pumped his fists into the air, "I'm going to the Grand Line of course!" Coby gasped, "I'm going to be King of the Pirates!"</p><p>Coby's jaw dropped, and his pupils shrank. He was halfway into a panic attack and he was practically choking, "I-Impossible! No way! No way! Pirate King? Are you serious?!"</p><p>"Yeah?" Luffy shrugged nonchalantly, "Got a problem with that?"</p><p>"What about your crew?" Coby stammered.</p><p>"Don't have one yet." Luffy replied cheerfully. "I just started out so I'm just now beginning to look!" Coby froze entirely, and even when Luffy stepped forward and waved his hand in the pink-haired boy’s face he still didn't move.</p><p>"P-Pirate King is the title given to the one who obtains everything! The greatest treasures! Wealth! Fame! Power!" With each word, Luffy nodded along, "…One Piece!"</p><p>"Yep!" Luffy confirmed with a large grin.</p><p>"Pirates all over the world are after that treasure!" Coby screamed in shock.</p><p>"Me too, and I'll be the one to get it!" Luffy wasn't bragging when he said that. It was just a statement of fact in his mind.</p><p>"No! Impossible! No way! No way! Absolutely no way!" Coby shook his head back and forth with his fists clenched. "There's no way you can stand at the apex of this Pirate era and scream that! No way no wa…"</p><p>Luffy's fist collided with the younger boy's head stopping his rant, "Shut up, you idiot."</p><p>"W-why'd you hit me?" Coby sniffled, clutching his aching head, "Not like I'm not used to it by now. It's alright I guess." He laughed and cried at the same time.</p><p>"It's not about whether I can or can't." Luffy said as he held onto his hat, "I'm going to do it because I want to!" He stated passionately, "It's my dream! I'll become the Pirate King, or I'll die fighting for that dream! I don't care if I lose my life trying!” He stood up and put his hat back on, "Well, I'm full. I'm going to go find a boat now."</p><p>"W-wait!" Coby yelled, "Luffy! I have a dream too! Do you think I can accomplish it if I stake my life on it?!"</p><p>"Do what?" Luffy stopped walking and looked over at the cowardly boy.</p><p>"Do you think I can join the Navy?" Luffy smirked, "Catching bad guys is my dream!" All traces of the stuttering were gone from the cowardly boy's voice, "It's been my dream ever since I was little!"</p><p>"Then do it!" Luffy yelled and clapped Coby on the back, "Don't let others take your dreams away! Because if you don't fight for your dreams then who will?"</p><p>"That's right!" Coby screamed, "I'm not going to be a chore boy forever!" He was working himself up into a frenzy at this point. "I'm going to be a great Marine and work tirelessly to catch criminals! And the first one I'm going to catch is Lady Alvida…No! Alvida!"</p><p>Just after Coby’s exclamation, the ceiling broke and all strength left the boy's body as Alvida's huge body landed behind him, "Who did you say you were going to catch, Coby?" Coby shook and trembled as Alvida's form was revealed by the clearing dust.</p><p>Luffy blinked as he looked at the new woman with his head tilted to the side. Five swords burst through the wood behind him, "Huh?" He looked puzzled at the situation.</p><p>"Ha, you don't look like Pirate Hunter Zoro to me." Alvida smirked at him, before locking her gaze onto the pink-haired boy, "Coby! Who is the most beautiful woman in the entire sea?" She demanded.</p><p>"Th-that would be…" Coby stammered and rubbed his head with a terrified smile.</p><p>"Hey, Coby, who's this fat hag?" Luffy asked while he picked his nose with his pinky. Jaws instantly dropped from both of the other occupants as well as the men standing at the hole in the ceiling.</p><p>Alvida stopped breathing for a moment, before she started to grind her teeth and tic marks started popping up all over her bloated face, "You damn brat!" She roared as she swung her massive mace up and over her head.</p><p>Luffy grinned. In the blink of an eye his foot was on Alvida's head with Coby, held by the face, along with him. "Later, lard ass!" With that, both he and Coby were flying up through the large hole. Alvida's mace crashed onto the space her target had previously occupied throwing up dust and wood chips.</p><p>The two landed on the deck, where the two trembling pirates Luffy had punched earlier were shaking. Steeling themselves, they drew new swords and charged with loud battle cries. Luffy tilted his head and was in front of them before they could blink, his fists warping their faces. Teeth and blood flew as they were both launched back across the deck, impacting the railings and falling right off the ship. Behind him a swordsman roared as he leapt in to strike from above. Luffy sidestepped, "Backstabs are for losers." He grabbed the man's face, slamming it into the ship’s deck. Wood cracked, and splinters flew out of the new crater formed by the pirate’s head.</p><p>"Huh?" Luffy looked up and saw a dozen more pirates in front of him, "Mass attacks aren't cool either!" He yelled as he ran from the dozen pirates chasing him. He grinned in amusement as he led the group of men on a chase around the deck. Out of his peripheral vision, he noticed a woman in a blue shirt and bandana sneaking out of Alvida's ship with a large bag slung over her shoulder. He grinned even wider. That was pretty interesting. He spun before laughing, "Just kidding!" In a matter of seconds, well before any of the Pirates even knew what hit them, they were all laid out on the deck with fist marks covering their bodies. Some had even been kicked off the deck and into the ocean. "Shishishi." Luffy chuckled at his handy work.</p><p>"A-amazing! You took out all those tough pirates so fast!" Coby shivered in amazement.</p><p>"Tough? Those guys were weaklings. No challenge at all." Luffy thumbed his nose while grinning.</p><p>"Do you…do you think I could ever be as strong as you, Luffy?" Coby asked quietly.</p><p>"Not a clue." Luffy grinned, "That's up to you, coward-boy!"</p><p>"S-so mean!" Coby slumped over, the word 'coward' practically looming over him heavily.</p><p>Suddenly another loud crash broke through the silence. Alvida had shown up again. "So, you're not Pirate Hunter Zoro? I haven't seen you use a sword yet." The huge woman growled.</p><p>"Oh hey, the hag showed up again." Luffy stated while picking his nose once more.</p><p>Coby's jaw dropped while Alvida’s face burned red in fury, "L-Luffy! Repeat after me!" He grabbed the taller man’s arm tightly, "Lady Alvida is the most…" suddenly, images of his newfound friend started flashing through his eyes. Luffy’s strength, his conviction, his lack of fear. "The most…" And then he saw himself. Abused, kicked around and terrorized. Coby grit his teeth and turned to Alvida, "The fattest, ugliest, most horrible bitch the sea has ever seen!" He roared out in defiance. Luffy erupted into laughter at the boy's words.</p><p>Alvida's teeth ground so hard they almost cracked, "Coby!" She raised her massive mace in fury, ready to end the pink-haired shrimp in front of her.</p><p>Coby shuddered, but stared at his oncoming death with courage, 'I…I did it! I actually fought against her!' He gulped and then screamed, "I have no regrets!"</p><p>Luffy moved in front of the giant iron mace, "Well said!" His smile was stupidly wide as he back-handed the giant hunk of metal and shattered it into tiny pieces that scattered all over the deck.</p><p>"What!" Alvida's eyes were bulging out of her head as she gasped in shock, mirrored by Coby whose jaw also dropped. He knew Luffy was strong, but this strong? What in the world was Luffy?</p><p>"So long, hag!" The smirking straw hat wearing pirate formed a fist and nailed the hefty Alvida square in the stomach. The fat on her torso rippled out from the point of impact, like a shockwave forming on her stomach. She choked out as much of a gasp of pain as she could, before being lifted clean off her feet and launched away like a misshapen cannonball. She went tumbling through the air rapidly shrinking into the distance. A minute later, Alvida slammed into the ocean sending up a large spray of water just like an actual cannonball. Luffy grinned and held his fist up while clapping his other hand onto his bicep. He then glanced over to the remains of Alvida’s crew who were just staring at him in shock. Luffy was about to demand a boat for him and Coby when the entire ship shook.</p><p>Two geysers rose up near the boat, caused by more cannon fire. Luffy grimaced as he noticed three Marine Battleships closing in. "Tch! What are those idiots trying to do?" He practically growled, "What are they firing at? Gramps would have their hides for firing so close to a civilian ship!" Glancing at Coby, who was somewhere between awestruck and terrified, he decided that he needed to get out of dodge. Remembering the woman who he’d seen sneaking away, he grabbed Coby and threw him over his shoulder before jumping from the cruise ship over to the pirate vessel still anchored to it. He quickly raced off in the direction he could sense the girl in and noticed her securing her sack to a small boat in a panicked rush.</p><p>With a leap he and Coby landed in the boat, and the orange-haired woman shrieked in fear as she almost fell off from the sudden impact. Luffy quickly grabbed her and steadied her, making sure that she and her bag didn’t fall off the small boat. "Who the hell are you?!" She shrieked in surprise.</p><p>"We can talk after we're out of here. Shishishi!" Luffy laughed for a moment before the boat rose on a swell from latest barrage of cannonballs. He turned hard eyes to the three Marine vessels, "Those idiots are going to hit the cruise ship too!"</p><p>With a scowl he placed his right foot back and held his two hands facing each other in front of his body. "What are you do…?” The woman cut herself off with a squeak of fear as electricity began leaping between Luffy’s hands, a literal ball of lightning began to rapidly grow in size as the smell of ozone filled the air. The electric charge in the air made Coby and the woman’s hair start to stand up, while the heat radiating from the ball had the both of them begin to inch away as far as they could get on the small dinghy.</p><p>Luffy grinned and took aim, "Goro Goro no Cannon!" He roared and thrust his hands forward. The bright ball of lightning rocketed forward at high speed, racing towards the three Marine ships. But Luffy wasn’t planning on killing anyone and hadn't been aiming at the ships. He was actually aiming at the ocean in between the three vessels. Instantly upon impact, the great ball of condensed lightning exploded, the top several meters of ocean water instantly turned to steam sending out a shockwave that sent the Battleships rocking unsteadily on the sudden rough waters. When the large amount of water suddenly disappeared it left a deep void in the ocean. Water quickly rushed into this empty space and slammed together in the center. The resulting collision generated a huge wave that radiated outwards. The Battleships were tossed up and down as the wave passed under them with panicking Marines holding onto their ship for dear life.</p><p>"Shishishi!" Luffy laughed at his success against the Battleships, while turning to look at Coby and the orangette.</p><p>"That was way too much!" The woman roared with shark teeth, almost hyperventilating as she saw the large wave approaching their tiny boat, "You're going to hit us too!"</p><p>"Oh right, the wave won’t stop for a while." Luffy deadpanned as they were picked up and carried away by the wave. Coby and the woman were grabbing onto the edge of the dinghy while screaming their heads off.</p><p>"You moron!" the woman screamed in terror as she kept a white knuckled grip on the side of the boat.</p><p>"I thought I was going to die." The orangette whimpered as she cradled her bag of treasure. Coby was staring blankly at the sky as if he had already accepted that he was dead. They had gotten away scot free. The Marines weren’t following them, the sun was shining, and the sea was calm. She huffed, before smiling slightly, "But hey, at least I got a lot of treasure out of it!" She said the last part mostly to herself, though Luffy heard her anyway.</p><p>"Shishishi, that was fun!" Luffy exclaimed before suddenly taking a fist to the head courtesy of an angry orange-haired woman. "Ow! What was that for?!"</p><p>"You almost got us killed!" She screamed in a demonic tone, shaking her smoking fist in front of him. She slumped over and lounged back on her bag, "I'm Nami!" She introduced herself sweetly, all traces of anger gone.</p><p>Luffy grinned, "I'm Monkey D. Luffy! The wimpy-looking guy is Coby." The pink-haired, wimpy-looking guy slumped down in depression.</p><p>Nami smiled and gave him a high five, "Well, you certainly secured our getaway, even if it was terrifying." She glared, her mood seeming to flip-flop again, "Don't do that again!" And then she was all smiles again, "Still, you are pretty strong!" She praised brightly.</p><p>"Shishishi! I worked hard!" Luffy confirmed, slapping a hand onto his bicep.</p><p>Nami smiled and leaned over, exposing her cleavage a tiny bit more. Luffy's eyes didn't move to take a peek, which disappointed Nami a little as she felt rightfully proud of her looks. "I'm a thief who steals from pirates!" She exclaimed, "I could use a strong guy like you helping me! I'm the best damn navigator in the East Blue and I’d definitely like some strong people helping me to take treasure!" She grinned, "You wanna be partners?"</p><p>"Nah, not interested." Luffy replied, slumping back against the edge of the dinghy.</p><p>Nami's smile dipped at the instant refusal, "Aww come on, don't be like that! We could get a lot of money!" She said enticingly. Luffy ignored her and stared out across the open ocean. "Oh fine." She muttered to herself and crossed her arms under her generous bust, "So, what are you out on the sea for?"</p><p>Coby, who had finally recovered, started sweating heavily. 'Please don't be an idiot! Please don't be an idiot! Just don’t say it!' he repeated in his head over and over again.</p><p>Only Luffy's wide smile was visible from under his straw hat. He pumped a fist up, "I'm going to be King of the Pirates!" He declared loudly. To the self-proclaimed Pirate Thief, who rapidly became the furious-looking, self-proclaimed Pirate Thief.</p><p>"So, you're a scumbag Pirate are you?!" Nami hissed, "Everything in this damn era is Pirate this and Pirate that! I hate it!" She pointed at Luffy angrily, "I hate Pirates! I should just toss you overboard!"</p><p>Coby gaped at the orangette, wondering if she was insane. Hadn’t she just witnessed what Luffy was capable of? Luffy looked at Nami so seriously that she started to sweat, quickly getting over her anger and remembering what he'd done earlier.</p><p>"You can't do that." Luffy spoke calmly, still looking Nami in the eye.</p><p>Putting on a brave face even as she tried not to tremble, Nami replied "Oh? And why not?"</p><p>Luffy stared at her intensely, like he was looking into her soul. Nami started feeling even more unnerved, "Because I'll die!" Luffy stated plainly. Nami and Coby both face-faulted into the wooden floor of the boat with loud crashes.</p><p>"This guy is a moron…" Nami muttered to herself as she pinched the bridge of her nose.</p><p>"Shishishi!" Luffy laughed, seeing their reactions.</p><p>"Why would you die? Can’t you swim?" Nami asked after getting back to her position leaning on her bag of treasure.</p><p>"I ate a Devil Fruit!" Nami and Coby both looked shocked at Luffy’s claim, "I’m a Lightning Man! Shishishi!" Luffy laughed at their stupefied faces.</p><p>"Wait! Wait! Wait! You mean those things actually exist?! I thought they were just a myth!" Nami stammered in shock. "Though that would explain what you did back there.” She trailed off remembering Luffy’s display of power earlier.</p><p>"Oh, they're real alright." Luffy chuckled. "Me and my two older brothers were each given a fruit by a strange guy we met one day." He smiled with a thoughtful look, remembering the day ten years ago. "I didn’t think anything about it at the time since I was hungry. But Gramps came back in a panic about it and then we learned what we’d eaten.” He laughed, "They taste super bad though. It was like someone had taken a pineapple, made it super sour, let it start rotting and then dunked it into filthy, stagnant water. It also left this odd tingling sensation in my mouth along with the bad aftertaste. Yuck!" Nami and Coby turned green from the description alone.</p><p>Luffy occasionally saw Ace in the papers at Makino’s bar. He was the Captain of the Spade Pirates for two years with a bounty of two hundred million Beri and the epithet ‘Fire Fist’. But in the last year Ace had apparently joined up with Whitebeard and his bounty had risen to five hundred million Beri. Sabo had set sail to find the Revolutionary Army. From the vague letters he’d sent back to Luffy, three in total over the last three years, he’d found them and was working to free the world of the influence of the World Nobles, the Tenryuubito. Sabo had managed to stay out of the Marine’s notice so far. He didn’t yet have a Wanted Poster or a bounty on his head. Luffy wasn’t sure if that was intentional or not, but knew that when Sabo did reveal himself he’d probably be marked with a high bounty. He wouldn’t be surprised if it rivaled Ace’s current bounty. Too bad for his brothers that he would soon have the biggest bounty between all of them! Luffy was hoping to start by beating Ace’s starting bounty of fifty five million Beri.</p><p>Nami shook the nauseating thought away before asking, "Wait, so you just ate some random fruit that a stranger gave you? Are you stupid?” She sighed before shifting the topic back to the Devil Fruits themselves. “Even though most people think they’re just legends, I’ve still heard that a single Devil Fruit can be sold for hundreds of millions on the black market. But I just never thought they were real, otherwise I definitely would have been hunting for them myself.” She whispered, "I could’ve been done by now."</p><p>"Yeah, that’s what Shanks told me." Nami and Coby gaped in disbelief at hearing the name of a Yonkou. Luffy grinned at them, seeing the shock in both of their eyes. "Not all pirates are scumbags you know. We were all good friends. Me, Ace, and Sabo even had a lot of parties with Shanks and his crew. And before they left for good, Shanks acknowledged my dream, and told me they'd be waiting for me in the Grand Line." He looked up at the sky, "I miss them sometimes." He stated before pulling his hat over his eyes and drifting off to sleep, not seeing the look in Nami's eyes. She turned her head away, not wanting Coby to see her clenched teeth and the unshed tears in her eyes. After all what could you say to statements that shattered your worldview so completely? What could you respond with when you realized that you'd just had the worst luck?</p><p>
  <strong>-Hours Later-</strong>
</p><p>Luffy awoke slowly and noticed it was already the dead of night. The boat was calmly sailing onward and both of the other two members of the boat seemed to be asleep. Coby was sleeping like the dead curled up on one side of the dinghy, while Nami was shivering and trying to snuggle into her bag of treasure. Luffy smiled and took off his cardigan before moving over to her. He draped the garment over her shivering form in an attempt to keep her warm. He turned to get back to his spot, when he heard her voice behind him.</p><p>"You're pretty brave, sleeping like that near someone that threatened to drown you." He turned and stared at Nami, who apparently had been awake. Despite her hatred of pirates, she was still cold, and the day's earlier conversation had shaken her. So she continued to hold the warm cardigan like a blanket over her body.</p><p>Luffy grinned back before replying, "You don’t seem like a bad person." She averted her eyes. "You've had some bad things done to you by pirates, haven't you?" She completely looked away from him at that. He sat right beside her, "I hate pirates like that too." He said seriously, getting Nami’s eyes to snap up and meet his. "Picking on the weak, hurting people, hurting their nakama." He growled, heckles raised high. "I hate bastards like that too. That's not what being a pirate is about."</p><p>"Of course it is. That's how all pirates are." Nami sneered, but it was halfhearted.</p><p>Luffy grinned back, "Sure they are. Next, I suppose you'll tell me all Marines are good and honorable people, right?" He chuckled at the woman. "You saw what those Marines did back there." He pointed his thumb back in the direction they came from. "They just started firing away; they didn’t even care if they hit the cruise ship. Anything is acceptable to catch pirates, right? Absolute Justice and all that." Nami looked away, biting her lip. He sighed and scooted over, "You shouldn’t judge everyone just because of what some do. I mean, yeah there are a whole lot of pirates out there destroying things and giving the rest of us a bad name. But that’s not every pirate." He shook his head. "Those types will never make it anywhere. They’re the ones who end up bully others to make themselves feel strong. To try and make up for the fact that they aren’t getting anywhere."</p><p>With that, Luffy laid back where he had originally been, pulled his hat back over his eyes and was out like a light. Nami stared in his direction for a moment, before pulling his cardigan over herself and trying to fall asleep with her mind whirling with all the things Luffy had said that day.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>So how was it? I wanted to get the first part of the canon story out in one shot. I hope it wasn’t rushed but I wanted to show off Luffy’s Lightning powers without him using them on Alvida and her fodder crew. While this version of Luffy has a bit more common sense and is slightly more intelligent, he’s still the goofy Luffy we all know and love. The only worldly advice he has to offer is what he heard from Shanks or was taught by Makino. So don’t expect him to be philosophizing and having deep conversations about the state of the world or the meaning of life. He’d rather talk about meat and what kind of adventures he can have!</strong>
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  <strong>Next chapter we’ll get to Shells Town to deal with Morgan and recruit Zoro! Whether the green-haired swordsman wants to join or not!</strong>
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  <strong>Until next time, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Shells Town, Roronoa Zoro</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! Luffy and Co. are heading for Shells Town and we all know who happens to be there! </strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 5 – Shells Town, Roronoa Zoro</strong>
</p><p>It was looking to be a clear and warm day as the sun finished rising on the small boat occupied by Luffy, Nami and Coby. Nami groaned and stretched as she stood up and checked the boat’s heading. Realizing she still had Luffy’s cardigan in her hand she tossed it over the sleeping pirate covering his exposed chest; a rather well muscled chest with defined abs that she found rather nice.</p><p>‘What am I thinking?! He’s a pirate! I just have to get to the next island and then I’ll never have to see him again.’ Nami thought to herself as she noticed Coby waking up. The two exchanged ‘Good mornings’ and opened the small boat’s storage compartment to get some of the food. Thankfully this had been an emergency life/escape boat on Alvida’s ship before Nami had stolen it. The small storage space was stocked with enough food and water to last four people two days. Coby brought out some of the food stock and tapped the small water barrel to fill two of the wooden cups. The orangette thief and the pink-haired former cabin boy sat and ate with only occasional chatter between them.</p><p>“Hey, Luffy, you want breakfast?” Coby called out and Luffy tipped his hat up and looked at the pudgy boy.</p><p>“Breakfast?” Luffy questioned as his eyes zeroed in on the food between Nami and Coby. “Food!” In a blink the food and drink Coby had set out for Luffy were in the pirate’s hands and disappearing into his mouth. “Ha~ Good stuff. Is there more?”</p><p>“No! We have to make sure this lasts until we get to the next island! Don’t even think of trying to eat more until at least mid-day!” Nami growled suddenly looking like she had sharp shark-like teeth.</p><p>“Aww man.” Luffy pouted, which Nami would never admit she thought looked adorable, before turning to stare out at the water. “So where are we headed?”</p><p>“Shells Town, there’s a Marine Base there and I need to pick up something on the island. You should be able to go on your way as long as you don’t cause trouble.” Nami informed him as she leaned back against her sack of treasure.</p><p>“Oh cool. I guess you are a good Navigator.” Luffy complimented with his large grin. Nami closed her eyes and puffed out her chest slightly in pride.</p><p>“Not just a good Navigator, the best Navigator in the entire East Blue.” Nami smirked as she opened her eyes only to see Luffy in her face. “Hey!” She yelled as she leaned further back against her treasure to make some space between their faces.</p><p>“The best?! Really?! Do you want to join my crew?!” Luffy asked with excited eyes.</p><p>“What? Hell no! You’re a pirate! I hate pirates! There’s no way I’d ever become one!” Nami yelled at Luffy causing the pirate to drop his grin for a moment.</p><p>“I refuse!” Luffy stated as his grin reappeared.</p><p>“What?” Nami questioned perplexed.</p><p>“I refuse your refusal!” Luffy nodded as he pulled his cardigan back on. “We’ll be crewmates, nakama!”</p><p>“That’s not how this works!” Nami yelled back as she clocked him over the head with her fist.</p><p>“Ow!” Luffy cried out from his new place on the floor of the boat. “What was that for?”</p><p>“Listen when someone’s talking!” Nami growled at him her fist practically smoking. Coby simply watched this back and forth between the fiery orangette and the lively pirate while trying to make himself smaller as to not get drawn into the exchange.</p><p>“So, how long till we get to this Shells Town place?” Luffy questioned as he picked himself up off the floor and laid back against the edge of the small boat.</p><p>“Probably early tomorrow morning.” Nami replied as she pulled a map out of her treasure bag and looked it over.</p><p>“Hmm, is this going to be boring?” Luffy asked as he looked out over the open ocean.</p><p>“If it’ll keep you from whining I guess we can chat or something.” Nami huffed as she stowed the map back into her treasure bag.</p><p>“Ok! What do you want to talk about?” Luffy replied all grins again. Nami barely restrained herself from rolling her eyes; he was like a child sometimes.</p><p>“How about why your name sounds so familiar to start? I could swear I’ve heard it somewhere before?” Nami questioned the name ringing a faint bell in her memory.</p><p>“Hmm? No clue, did we meet somewhere before?” Luffy asked. “I don’t think I ever saw you on Dawn Island.</p><p>“I’ve never been to Dawn Island nor do I intend to. That place is where the Corvo Mountains are, a terrifying place full of huge beasts and chocked full of bandits. The only safe places on that island are the Goa Kingdom and the small villages along the shore. No one goes there aside from some merchant ships normally.” Nami replied having heard the stories of the remote island.</p><p>“I lived there my whole life until I left. I even stayed with some nice bandits for a few years with my brothers!” Luffy grinned getting incredulous looks from Coby and Nami. “Plus those animals aren’t too bad!”</p><p>“I’ve heard that most of them are three or four times bigger than normal, how is that ‘not too bad’?” Nami asked with a twitch in her eye.</p><p>“Because they taste delicious!” Luffy smiled with a bit of drool remembering hunting with Ace and Sabo to bring down the large animals. Coby fell back entirely from shock while Nami only looked at Luffy like he was nuts.</p><p>“You ate them?” Coby questioned from his spot laid out on the floor.</p><p>“Yep! Me and my brothers had to get our own food, that was Dadan’s rule, if you want food get it yourself. She and her bandits only provided water, if we wanted anything like rice we had to hunt an animal and trade the meat for it in Fuusha Village.” Luffy explained getting bug-eyed looks from Nami and Coby.</p><p>“Ok, I’m just going to get back to my original question.” Nami steered the conversation back to what she’d asked previously. “Why does your name sound kinda familiar?”</p><p>“No idea? Maybe you know my gramps?” Luffy reasoned, his grandpa was supposed to be famous among the Marines or something.</p><p>“Who’s your grandpa?” Nami asked now curious.</p><p>“Monkey D. Garp!” Coby suddenly shouted while pointing at Luffy in shock.</p><p>“Huh?” Nami wondered why the pinkette suddenly had such an outburst, though that name did ring a bell.</p><p>“Yeah that’s gramps.” Luffy nodded while unconsciously rubbing the back of his head where many, many ‘Fists of Love’ had struck over the years.</p><p>“Wait a minute! The ‘Hero of the Marines’ Garp?! He’s your grandpa?!” Nami exclaimed in shock.</p><p>“Oh yeah, they call him that too. I like his other name better, ‘Garp the Fist’! It sounds stronger!” Luffy laughed as he raised his own fist. Coby was shocked silent at this revelation while Nami only grew more curious.</p><p>“How did you end up a pirate then? Your grandpa wouldn’t have just let you, right?” Nami asked since surely a decorated Marine Vice Admiral wouldn’t allow his grandson to become a filthy pirate.</p><p>“We argued about it all the time, he wanted all three of us to be Marines but we all had other things we wanted to do instead.” Luffy laughed again remembering all the fights they got into with his gramps. “Eventually he gave up, grumbled something about insubordination the whole time during the last argument too.”</p><p>“Geez, what kind of moron decides to become a pirate when their own grandfather is a famous Marine Officer?” Nami mused while looking over Luffy. “Wouldn’t that have fast-tracked you into an Officer position yourself if you’d joined up?”</p><p>“Boring!” Luffy groaned as he stared up at the sky. “Orders, orders, orders and then you just have to do what they say. I’d rather have my freedom and the whole world to adventure through!” He cheered with a raised fist.</p><p>“Freedom, huh?” Nami murmured quietly to herself. She would definitely like to have some of that for herself too.</p><p>“So why are you so desperate for money that you’re risking your life robbing pirates?” Luffy questioned and Nami stiffened up slightly. This guy might act childish sometimes but she had to remember that he was a pirate; apparently a pirate that had been raised, at least partially, by mountain bandits as well. There was no way he was completely naïve or stupid.</p><p>“None of your business!” Nami replied as she huffed and turned her head away from him.</p><p>“Well you must need a lot if you’re robbing people who’re willing to kill for it. Seems like you could find an easier way is all.” Luffy said with a tilt of his head.</p><p>“Well, unlike some people, I wasn’t handed a Devil Fruit that was worth hundreds of millions of Beri! So I have to get money a different way.” Nami growled getting Luffy to raise his hands up in a placating gesture.</p><p>“I didn’t even know what it was when I ate it.” Luffy reminded her getting the orangette to calm down slightly.</p><p>“Still, I’d love to run across one of them. I’d score a hundred million easy!” Nami sighed knowing how unlikely that was.</p><p>“One should be wary in their acquisition of Devil Fruits, lest the Hunters come for them in turn.” Luffy spoke ominously getting both Coby and Nami to snap their gazes onto the suddenly serious pirate.</p><p>“What’s that supposed to mean?” Nami questioned unnerved by the tone Luffy had spoken in.</p><p>“It’s something I heard from both gramps and the Marine he got to train me and my brothers when we were learning how to use our Devil Fruits. Shanks’ First Mate Benn told us about it too. It’s an old saying from the Grand Line about the dangers of having a Devil Fruit or having the powers from one.” Luffy informed his eyes dark and serious.</p><p>“What’s it referring to about Hunters?” Coby asked never having seen Luffy so serious.</p><p>“The Kuro Kari (Black Hunt) and their Shadows, though according to Benn they go by many names. Kuro Kari is simply the organization as a whole.” Luffy explained his arms resting on his legs and his face stony. “Depending on whom you ask the group either doesn’t exist or their members go by different titles. Benn told me and my brothers several titles to be wary of since we all have Logia fruits.”</p><p>“Like what?” Nami asked feeling goosebumps on her arms.</p><p>“Shadows, Underworld Hunters, Shades, Gray Agents, Undertakers, Masked Hunters, Unknowns, Specters, and Dead Men are the ones Benn mentioned. If we even hear the term Underworld Black Market we should be on guard and prepare to leave whatever island we’re on as soon as possible. That was Benn’s warning to us.” Luffy replied as he looked into both of their eyes in turn. The stone cold seriousness displayed by the sometimes childish pirate nowhere to be found.</p><p>“What the hell is this Kuro Kari?” Nami asked though she’d figured out the basics from context already. This organization hunted Devil Fruits and Devil Fruit Users.</p><p>“No one actually knows how old it is; just that it’s been around for longer than anyone can remember. A lot of people don’t even know the rumors about it, the ones who do either think it’s a myth or exaggerated. But they do exist; Shanks’ crew has had run-ins with a few members. My gramps apparently arrested one once when he was only a Captain in the Marines. But they operate from the Criminal Underworld so they’re hard to track down and virtually unknown.” Luffy explained getting shivers from Nami and Coby. Bandits operated on singular islands and more often than not didn’t cause excess trouble. Pirates caused the most ruckus among the outlaws of the world and were in turn the most infamous and well known, most pirates saw a large Bounty as a sign of strength and it garnered a lot of clout among pirates. Bounty Hunters were barely operating within the laws of the World Government catching criminals and cashing in the bounties. But the ones no one mentioned, mostly because they weren’t known to exist by most people, were the Underworld Criminals. Assassins, Saboteurs, Illegal Goods Manufacturers, various groups of Mercenaries and illegal Bounty Hunter Organizations, even some Secret Societies were rumored to make up this shadowy underworld of crime.</p><p>“So how does that relate to me finding a Devil Fruit? I’d be trying to sell it as soon as possible for the hundred million Beri!” Nami stated after making sure to steady her voice.</p><p>“It’s one of the most likely ways you’d meet a member of the Kuro Kari. Where do you think some of the most notorious Pirate Crews and even the World Government get all of the Devil Fruits they have? Finding so many just by luck isn’t likely. Someone has to be supplying them.” Luffy responded.</p><p>“The World Government?! But the Marines work for the Government! That means…” Coby trailed off realizing that the Marines were more than likely being supplied with Devil Fruits by the Criminal Underworld.</p><p>“Yeah…” Nami whispered shocked. To think that the people who were supposed to uphold the law were being supplied by the Criminal Underworld was unsettling to say the least. “So you’re telling me that if I happen to stumble across a Devil Fruit and try to sell it one of these Kuro Kari people would show up to what, take it? Kill me?”</p><p>“No idea I only know what I’ve been told.” Luffy shrugged. “According to Benn the organization isn’t close. Most of the members don’t know each other well. Only the Heads of the Organization put out information on locations and the like. The rest are just people that hand the Devil Fruits over in exchange for the money the Organization pays for them. The Heads set up a Shadow Auction were members of various organizations, Marines, World Government, Pirate Crews, and the like send representatives to bid on the collected Devil Fruits.”</p><p>“How does the First Mate of a Yonkou know so much about them?” Coby asked visibly shaking.</p><p>“Benn wouldn’t tell us in full. Only that one of the Kuro Kari members they ran into actually attacked one of their nakama. Shanks’ doesn’t tolerate anyone harming his friends so my best guess would be that they forced the information out of the one that attacked them.” Luffy replied making Coby break out into a flop sweat.</p><p>“So these people are super strong or something?” Nami questioned trying not to show how unnerved she was.</p><p>“I think it’s like the Bounty Hunters honestly, some weak and others strong. There might be a lot of people in the world but only a handful are desperate or greedy enough to try and hunt down Devil Fruit Users. Others that aren’t strong enough to fight a Devil Fruit User probably use connections to track down the Fruits themselves and then hand them over to the Kuro Kari.” Luffy responded with a shrug.</p><p>“Yeah, I’m definitely not joining your crew!” Nami exclaimed causing Luffy’s face to go from serious to shocked instantly.</p><p>“What? Why not?” Luffy questioned getting Nami to look at him incredulously.</p><p>“Because I don’t want some crazy Hunter from the Underworld to come after me!” Nami yelled back getting Luffy to nod.</p><p>“I see, well I still refuse your refusal!” Luffy declared only to get clobbered by Nami again.</p><p>“Listen when someone else is talking!” Nami screamed at him with shark teeth.</p><p>“But if you’re my nakama I’d protect you from them, of course! Plus I’d train you up and make you strong enough to take care of yourself!” Luffy promised as he tried to convince Nami.</p><p>“No means no, mister!” Nami refused again turning her head away from him. No way was she getting involved with anyone from the Criminal Underworld! That sounded way more dangerous than dealing with pirates!</p><p>The group spent the rest of the day sailing onwards with Nami constantly refusing to become Luffy’s Navigator while he continued to try and convince her. Coby watched the back and forth while staying out of the way so he wouldn’t accidentally get nailed by one of Nami’s punches.</p><p>“You never did tell me why you wanted so much money that you’re risking your life for it.” Luffy remarked. Night had fallen and Coby was already asleep while Luffy and Nami were awake. The orangette turned to him annoyed before speaking.</p><p>“Why’re you so interested? I told you I’m not going to be your Navigator.” Nami glared while Luffy grinned back.</p><p>“What if I helped you get the money you want? I’ll even let you be Treasurer along with Navigator!” Luffy offered getting Nami to start and try not to look at him. She had to make sure she wasn’t showing any signs of interest in the, admittedly, lucrative sounding offer.</p><p>“No deal, you’re a pirate you’d probably just steal it for yourself.” Nami huffed.</p><p>“I’d never do that to my nakama!” Luffy exclaimed only for Nami to shush him while pointing at Coby. The pudgy boy was still asleep but had shifted from the noise.</p><p>“You say that but I don’t trust pirates to keep their word.” Nami stated as she glared at him.</p><p>“Then I’ll prove it to you.” Luffy stated with determination. Nami looked at him with a raised eyebrow. “You said you had something to pick up at the Shells Town place, right?” Nami nodded prompting Luffy to continue. “Then I’ll help you get it and you’ll get to keep whatever it is, no questions asked.” He promised while looking her directly in the eyes.</p><p>“You’re actually serious, aren’t you?” Nami breathed out since she couldn’t see any sign of lying in Luffy’s eyes. She’d gotten pretty damn good at spotting liars after eight years of thieving after all.</p><p>“Of course, I’ve staked my word on it! I’ll help you get what you want.” Luffy nodded his eyes never leaving Nami’s.</p><p>“We’ll see how much that’s worth when we get there, won’t we?” Nami questioned rhetorically as she turned over and snuggled against her bag of treasure and closed her eyes. She’d wake up every couple of hours to check their course and make any corrections needed. A warm cloth falling on her body made her eyes open and look down at her curled up body. Luffy’s red cardigan was once more draped over her to keep her warm. The pirate had obviously taken it off and thrown it to her since he was already leaning back against the side with his hat over his eyes. “Idiot.” She mumbled but pulled the warm cloth over her form anyway.</p><p>The next morning, shortly after breakfast, their destination came into sight. The trio looked on as the large tower of the Marine Base of Shells Town became clearer as they neared the island. Luffy’s excitement was almost comical while Coby was already getting nervous about his future enlistment. Nami just stayed quiet while thinking about the map she needed to steal.</p><p>“Whoa! We really got here and when you said we would too! You’re awesome Nami!” Luffy cheered as the island drew closer.</p><p>“You just have to follow the compass, how the hell were you planning to sail the seas when your navigation skills are so poor?” Nami questioned while Luffy looked back with a tilt of his head.</p><p>“I was going to find a Navigator, of course. Lucky for me I found the best one in the East Blue!” Luffy cheered as he smiled at Nami. The orangette scoffed and turned away but couldn’t stop the tiny grin that formed on her lips. Once the small boat docked at Shells Town the trio was noticed by the Dock Master who quickly came over to collect the docking fee.</p><p>“Welcome to Shells Town, it’s forty five hundred Beri to dock your boat for the day. I’ll also need your names.” The Dock Master informed as he opened his ledger and held his pen over it. Nami was about to use her looks to get a discount when Luffy reached into his shorts pocket and pulled out a bag that jingled with the sound of coins. Opening the bag Luffy pulled out a small folded stack of bills; counting out a few Luffy smiled as he handed over the bills.</p><p>“Let’s make it nine thousand Beri and forget the names?” Luffy offered his wide grin still in place. The Dock Master glanced down at the nine bills each worth one thousand Beri. Carefully taking the money and pocketing half of it the Dock Master put the rest in the pouch on his waist with the emblem of Shells Town on it.</p><p>“Welcome to Shells Town, Misters and Miss Smith, please enjoy your stay.” The Dock Master nodded as he wrote in his ledger and walked away.</p><p>“Will do.” Luffy grinned again as he led Nami And Coby down the dock and into Shells Town. Coby was still staring at him stunned while Nami was looking him over with a calculating eye.</p><p>“I have to admit, I didn’t expect that from you.” Nami confessed getting a chuckle from Luffy.</p><p>“Shishishi, that’s something Shanks’ crew taught me and my brothers. If you don’t want to cause a scene don’t give out your name. That way if something goes wrong and you end up causing a scene anyway the Dock Master and the other locals don’t have your name to give to the Marines.” Luffy grinned before tossing a one hundred Beri coin to a fruit vendor and picking up a fresh pear. The pirate started eating his fruit while Nami found herself once again reassessing him. Just how much of his childishness was real and how much was he exaggerating to hide what he knew?</p><p>“So, Coby, you mentioned someone named Zoro being here right?” Luffy questioned the pinkette.</p><p>“Yeah, ‘Pirate Hunter’ Roronoa Zoro is being held by the Marines here in Shells Town. Why?” Coby confirmed wary of Luffy’s reason for asking.</p><p>“Is he strong?” Luffy asked as the trio continued to walk down the main road talking quietly.</p><p>“According to all the stories he’s like a demon in human skin. They say he’s never missed a mark since he started bounty hunting.” Coby replied starting to sweat lightly at the look on Luffy’s face.</p><p>“I think I should see if he wants to join my crew.” Luffy grinned widely. Nami face palmed while Coby’s eyes widened comically.</p><p>“No way, Luffy! He’ll cut you down as soon as talk to you! He’s notorious for his swordsmanship! You’ll be killed.” Coby tried to dissuade his pirate friend from his course of action.</p><p>“Nah, I’ll be fine, I’m strong!” Luffy grinned as they continued to head towards the base. “So he’s in there?”</p><p>“I’m sure he’s not in the yard, Luffy. Zoro is probably being kept in the deepest dungeon they have.” Coby stated only to realize he was talking to the air as both Luffy and Nami were already holding onto the top of the wall and looking over it. Though Nami was only doing it to scope out the base knowing the map was somewhere inside.</p><p>“Actually, there’s someone tied up over there.” Luffy replied as he looked at the man tied to a wooden post.</p><p>Coby slowly climbed his way up the wall, struggling to get to the top, but as soon as he caught sight of the man tied to the post he gasped. “That's him! The black bandana and the green haramaki around his waist! It's Roronoa Zoro!”</p><p>“That's Zoro? I thought you said he was strong? Those ropes look pretty easy to break to me.” Luffy commented looking over the swordsman’s current condition.</p><p>Coby and Nami startled slightly when the sound of wood meeting stone came from right next to them. They looked over along with Luffy and saw that a wooden ladder had been propped up against the wall. A small, brunette girl in a striped dress made a shushing noise at them when she made it to the top of the ladder. She then made her way over the wall with a rope.</p><p>“Luffy! Go get her before he hurts her!” Coby exclaimed in panic watching the small girl run towards Zoro.</p><p>“You’re the one that wants to be a Marine, you get her.” Luffy responded, getting a frown from Nami. Luffy ignored her gaze and watched on interested in what the girl was doing.</p><p>“What are you doing here?” Zoro asked his voice rough with dryness. “Do you want to die? Get lost.” The girl squeaked, before revealing what she had been carrying.</p><p>“I made you some rice balls, Big Brother Zoro! You haven't eaten in a while, right?” She looked up at him nervously. “This is the first time I've made rice balls by myself so…”</p><p>“Get out of here! I'm not hungry!” Zoro interrupted the girl with a growl.</p><p>“But it’s been…” The girl started to say before she was cut off again.</p><p>“Leave! Or else I'll kill you!” Zoro threatened the girl.</p><p>“You sure you still want to recruit this guy?” Nami questioned with a grimace, but before Luffy could reply, someone else approached the two. The person was a tall, rather skinny boy in a purple suit. He had an oval-shaped bowl cut with the bangs parted in the front.</p><p>“So rude, you’d better not be picking on little kids, Roronoa Zoro, otherwise I'll have to tell my father.” The smugness practically oozing from the blonde’s tone made Nami's skin crawl.</p><p>“Someone from the Marines?” Coby asked seeing two Marines behind the blonde. “She should be safe now.” Nami looked over at Coby in confusion at his statement. Didn't he notice this blonde guy was practically the poster child for the term ‘scum bag’?</p><p>“Well, if it isn't the Captain's bastard son?” Zoro mocked the purple suited blonde.</p><p>“My dad's a Marine Captain. Don't get cocky.” The blonde sneered before he turned his attention to the small girl. “Hello, little girl, oh, are those rice balls! Don't mind if I do!” He grabbed one of the rice balls from the girl and took a bite, ignoring the girl’s shouts of them being for Zoro. He choked before spitting out all the rice. “What the hell did you put in this? Sugar? You put salt in rice balls you dumb brat! Salt!”</p><p>“I-I thought it would taste better if it was sweet!” She stuttered out.</p><p>“How could anyone eat something like this?” The blonde grabbed the other rice ball and threw it onto the floor before stomping on it repeatedly.</p><p>“No! Stop it! He won't be able to eat them anymore!” The girl dropped to her knees with tears in her eyes.</p><p>“How cruel!” Coby exclaimed while Nami glared at the blonde and Luffy's eyes were shadowed by his hat.</p><p>“That's so mean.” The little girl cried. “I did my best on them.” She got out through her tears.</p><p>“Don't cry. This is why I hate brats.” The blonde pointed to a sign posted near Zoro. “This is all your fault you know? Can't you read? It says, 'Anyone caught helping a prisoner shall be charged with the same crime<em>.</em>' You know how scary my dad can be, right?" He turned to one of the Marines with him. “Toss her over the fence.”</p><p>“But she's just a little girl, sir!” The Marine replied in shock.</p><p>“Are you questioning my orders? Throw her out of here or I'll tell my dad!” The blonde roared, spittle flying from his mouth.</p><p>“Yes Helmeppo sir!" The Marine reached the girl and gently picked her up. He whispered quietly into her ear. “Just tuck into a ball and try to roll. It should minimize any damage.” And with that he tossed her over the wall.</p><p>Nami gasped as she saw the girl flying over the wall. She wanted to catch the small girl, but she couldn’t get to her in time. Luffy was somehow where the girl was going to land and caught her without a word. Nami hadn’t even seen him move. Luffy steadied the crying girl, before playfully messing up her hair. The girl's tears continued and she wrapped her arms around Luffy’s torso as best she could.</p><p>“Hey now, don't cry. You're a strong girl, aren’t ya?” Luffy asked softly. He got a small nod from the girl as she stemmed her tears. “Go on home, ok?” The small girl nodded before making her way down the street and out of sight. Nami had to admit that she was shocked at Luffy’s interaction with the crying girl, but as soon as she was out of sight Luffy's smile vanished. He glared at the wall darkly his anger aimed at the blonde behind it.</p><p>“Man, I didn't think you would have this kind of endurance.” Helmeppo was now taunting Zoro.</p><p>“This is nothing. I'll last the whole month. You better keep your promise.” Zoro growled at the annoying blonde.</p><p>“Yeah, I'll keep it alright. If you can survive the whole month, that is.” Helmeppo laughed as he and his bodyguards walked away.</p><p>“Little bastard.” Zoro muttered before closing his eyes to rest. A sudden noise in front of him made him open them again, only to see Luffy standing in front of him. “Who are you? You should leave, otherwise that brat will go cry to his daddy.”</p><p>“You say that like you aren’t stronger than all of them.” Luffy grinned getting Zoro to smirk back. “So, you're here for a whole month without food, huh? I probably wouldn’t last more than a couple days.”</p><p>“That's what makes us different. You need willpower to fulfill your dreams.” Zoro stated with conviction.</p><p>“Dreams, huh? I like that word.” Luffy replied as he took Zoro’s measure. “I want you to join my crew.” He grinned.</p><p>“Crew? You’re a pirate?” Zoro asked surprised, the guy didn’t look the part.</p><p>“That's right.” Luffy smiled. “I’m going to be King of the Pirates!”</p><p>“Not interested. Why don't you go find someone else to join you in being a criminal?” Zoro laughed before coughing.</p><p>“There's nothing wrong with being a pirate.” Luffy replied with a shake of his head.</p><p>“Pirates are bad guys, aren't they? I'll never join you. I have my own goals to accomplish.” Zoro stated as he stared Luffy in the eye.</p><p>“Just like the Marines are the good guys, right?” Luffy responded with a grin, getting a small smirk from the green-haired man. “Well, if you change your mind, I'll be here for a little while.” He walked away with a short wave.</p><p>“Wait!” Zoro called out, getting Luffy to turn around with a curious look. “That rice ball. Can you get that for me?” He asked as he motioned his head towards it.</p><p>“Where did all that willpower go?” Luffy snickered. “This thing is more dirt than rice now.”</p><p>“It doesn't matter.” Zoro retorted. “Just give it to me! I’m eating all of it.” He opened his mouth wide. Luffy tossed the remains of the rice ball in with a look of understanding. Zoro grimaced as he started chewing, visibly disgusted by the taste and texture. A look he shared with the still watching Nami.</p><p>“Trying to make yourself sick?” Luffy questioned the green-haired man.</p><p>“It was delicious. The best thing I've ever eaten. Make sure to tell the little girl that, for me.”  Zoro demanded after choking down the mostly dirt rice ball.</p><p>“That looked gross. I wanted to hurl just watching it.” Luffy laughed as he made his way over to the wall. Nami looked a bit green from watching as well.</p><p>“I want him on my crew! He's awesome!” Luffy laughed as he landed on the other side of the wall.</p><p>“You're some kind of idiot, aren't you? Didn't you listen to what he said?” Nami shook her head in exasperation.</p><p>“Oh, I heard him just fine.” Luffy chuckled. “We need to go find that little girl and cheer her up.”</p><p>“Cheering up little girls? What kind of weird pirate is this guy?” Nami questioned herself before following. She’d already gotten the base scoped out, so she didn't have any reason to stay here. Once they got back into town, they found the girl inside a restaurant that her family owned.</p><p>“So he really ate everything?” The girl beamed happily.</p><p>“He did Rika.” Luffy nodded. “He told me to tell you it was delicious, the best thing he ever ate.”</p><p>“I don't understand.” Coby pondered as he sat at the bar next to Luffy. “Isn't he supposed to be some kind of monster?”</p><p>“No!” Rika screamed right in his face, getting the pudgy pinkette to jerk backwards from the young girl. “Big Brother Zoro is really nice! He didn’t do anything wrong!”</p><p>“Why is he tied up then?” Nami asked from her seat on the other side of Luffy.</p><p>“It's because of me.” Rika stated as she teared up. “That jerk Helmeppo had a wolf that he used to terrorize the town!” She explained angrily. “It came here to mom's restaurant with him and started scaring all the customers! It almost attacked me before Big Brother Zoro sliced it up! But Helmeppo told him that he would have me and mommy executed for it and made a deal with him!”</p><p>“That's horrible!” Nami exclaimed. “Why aren’t the Marines doing anything about it?”</p><p>“Because he's Captain Morgan's son, everyone's too afraid of him.” Rika looked down and let her tears fall. “Big Brother Zoro is starving out there because he saved me. That stupid Onion-head even punches and kicks Zoro while he's tied up! I hate the Morgans! They're bad people! But everyone's too scared to fight them!” The door suddenly slammed open revealing the blonde bastard himself.</p><p>“I'm so hungry.” Helmeppo sneered at Rika's mother. “We're eating here for free you got that? Hurry up and bring me some alcohol! What's taking you so long?” He looked around the restaurant before opening his mouth again. “Oh, and since I'm bored, I've decided to execute Zoro tomorrow.” Rika gasped in fright. “Look forward to it, everyone!” He laughed loudly.</p><p>By this point Luffy had more than enough of the blonde ass hat. He stood up with his hat shadowing his eyes.</p><p>“Luffy?” Nami asked in trepidation, already aware of what he was probably going to do.</p><p>Luffy stalked toward Helmeppo's laughing form and launched his fist into the blonde's face. Helmeppo's head warped around Luffy’s fist and the rest of his body lifted clean off his chair before he rocketed into the wall breaking right through it and landing in a heap in the street in front of the restaurant. The other customers inside the restaurant stared at him in shock as the pirate grabbed the faces of both of the Marines with Helmeppo and flung them bodily right through the newly made hole.</p><p>Helmeppo had black spots in his vision. The earth was spinning too fast. Or was it upside down? He was grabbing at the dirt road to make sure he didn't fall into the sky. That was how hard Luffy had hit the arrogant blonde. When everything started to slow down again, he saw his own blood all over the ground and his men on the ground in front of him. The guy that had punched him was walking towards him silently.</p><p>“Who da ‘ell are ‘oo?” Helmeppo tried to speak before flinching at the pain in his jaw. “Do ‘oo know ‘hoo I amb?”</p><p>“You're trash, nothing more.” Luffy growled at the sniveling blonde.</p><p>“I'm Captain Morgan's son!” Helmeppo managed to get out around the swelling of his face and jaw. “I'll have you executed for this!” The blonde threatened.</p><p>“You better run back to daddy, before I punch you again.” Luffy threatened getting Helmeppo to flinch back in terror. The blonde’s Marine bodyguards groaned and picked up Helmeppo before running off back to the base.</p><p>“You know you just made that scene you were trying to avoid.” Nami informed as she came to stand next to Luffy. “Now the base is probably going to be on high alert; how am I supposed to get what I came for now?”</p><p>“Oh, is what you want in the base? I'll help you get it! I kinda want to meet this Captain Morgan and punch him in the face too.” Luffy grinned; getting Nami to sigh with a small grin of her own.</p><p>“I’ll hold you to that. Just make a good distraction for me.” Nami requested with a smirk.</p><p>“Sure thing! Shishishi!” Luffy chuckled as he walked off towards the base. “I've got to go pick up my new nakama, after all.”</p><p>“Didn’t he refuse to join?" Nami questioned.</p><p>“I’ll convince him this time!” Luffy stated full of confidence. “We'll make sure to meet up with you so we can all leave together.”</p><p>“Hold on a minute. I never agreed to go anywhere with you after this island!” Nami argued.</p><p>“Why wouldn’t you?” Luffy asked with a tilt of his head. “We're nakama already, right?”</p><p>“Don't get ahead of yourself.” Nami blustered looking away from Luffy’s eyes. “You'll probably never see me again after this.”</p><p>“Nope.” Luffy grinned at her. “We definitely will. You're our nakama!”</p><p>“Just go be a distraction, you idiot.” Nami huffed while pointing in the direction of the Marine Base.</p><p>“Shishishi!” Luffy chuckled as he started walking again.</p><p>Zoro was in the courtyard, eyes downcast and shadowed. His eyes snapped open upon hearing footsteps in front of his position. Looking up he spotted the pirate from before. “You again? You don’t listen very well do you?”</p><p>“I'm going to untie these ropes.” Luffy looked serious and Zoro wondered what had changed in the short time he’d last seen the pirate. “You're going to be my nakama!”</p><p>“Didn't you hear me last time, pirate? You want me to be a criminal? I refuse! You're becoming annoying!” Zoro snorted as he looked down again.</p><p>“What's wrong with being a pirate?” Luffy asked with his head tilted.</p><p>“Pirates are scum. Who the hell would want to be one?” Zoro shot back.</p><p>“Why does that matter to you? Aren't you already known as a vicious, evil bounty hunter?” Luffy grinned widely.</p><p>“I don't give a damn what society says about me. Nothing matters except for my dream. I've never regretted anything I’ve done.” Zoro replied calmly before smirking viciously. “I will survive! I will accomplish what I set out to do!”</p><p>“That’s great!” Luffy grinned. “But I've already decided you're going to be my nakama!"</p><p>“You don't get to decide that for others!” Zoro roared back at the pirate.</p><p>“You’re a swordsman, right?” Luffy questioned.</p><p>“That's right.” Zoro nodded. “I'm going to be the World’s Greatest Swordsman!” He declared his dream for the world to hear.</p><p>“That's great! The Pirate King would expect no less from his crew, right?” Luffy laughed with his large grin on his face.</p><p>“Pirate King?” Zoro laughed. “Yeah right!” He smirked, looking at the still grinning Luffy. “Thanks, but no thanks. I already said I have no intention of joining you. I'll last out the rest of the week and leave on my own.”</p><p>“How’re you going to do that when that blonde bastard is planning on executing you tomorrow?” Luffy questioned with a raised eyebrow.</p><p>“What was that?” Zoro growled.</p><p>“You should know not to trust an obvious scum bag like him.” Luffy shook his head. “He’s already declared, to a full restaurant in the middle of the lunch rush; that he is going to publicly execute you tomorrow. Just because he’s bored<em>.</em>”</p><p>“Is that so? That little bastard.” Zoro growled as he clenched his fists.</p><p>“So, where's your sword, future World’s Greatest Swordsman?” Luffy questioned with a grin.</p><p>“That bastard brat took them. They're in the base.” Zoro ground out his anger clear on his face.</p><p>“Ok. I was hoping to punch this Captain Morgan in the face too.” Luffy smirked “I'll go get it and get you out of those ropes. We'll be nakama then, won't we?” Luffy turned towards the base.</p><p>“Not it, them.” Zoro spoke making Luffy freeze before he turned and looked at the swordsman curiously. “You'll find three swords. They’re all mine. I use Santōryū the Three Sword Style.”</p><p>“I knew you were cool!” Luffy laughed before running straight towards the Tower’s Main Entrance.</p><p>Zoro's eyes bugged out as he watched Luffy dash across the field and literally blast the large steel doors open in a bright flash of light! The whole tower shook from the blast while Luffy dashed in. Zoro stared for a moment before slumping, “What the hell did I just get myself into?"</p><p>After the tower stopped shaking shock and confusion spread among the large group of Marines on the roof while a vein bulged on Captain Morgan's head. “What was that?!” The Captain howled as he turned to look over the edge of the tower to see the front entrance smoking. Everyone gasped in horrified shock as cracks started forming on the statute that they’d been trying to raise. Before anyone could say anything the entire thing shattered at the waist and the top half went falling down into the courtyard. Every single Marine on the roof gaped in shock, their faces blue and their eyes wide.</p><p>“Captain Morgan! There’s an intruder in the base! He blasted open the Main Entrance and disappeared!” A Marine reported huffing and puffing from running up to the roof.</p><p>"Find him! Find him and bring him to me! I want his head!" Morgan was apoplectic with rage the veins on his head visibly pulsing.</p><p>“Captain, there's someone running into the courtyard!” One of the Marines reported having noticed the movement.</p><p>“Traitors! I’m surrounded by traitors!” Morgan roared out as he made his way into the base heading for the courtyard. Inside the base Nami was picking the lock on the door to Captain Morgan’s office when a huge explosion went off followed by the tower shaking. After recovering for a moment she looked around and saw Luffy dashing up a set of stairs.</p><p>“Idiot.” Nami huffed and resumed trying to get the door open.</p><p>“Found you!” Luffy declared as he kicked open a set of wooden doors with a sign that read, ‘Helmeppo’s Room’. He’d sensed the arrogant blonde with his Observation Haki and followed the ‘voice’ until he found him.</p><p>“Why are you here?!” Helmeppo cried out in terror.</p><p>“I need Zoro's swords.” Luffy demanded.</p><p>“They’re right over there.” Helmeppo pointed towards the corner where three swords sat against the wall. Sweat was pouring down the blonde’s face from his fear.</p><p>“Thanks!” Luffy smiled as he grabbed the three swords and tied them onto his back with a curtain he yanked off the nearby window. Turning around he noticed Helmeppo trying to sneak out of the room. “Nope!” He smirked as he dashed forward and punched Helmeppo in the back of the head. The blonde went flying face first into the wall beside the broken doors and hit the floor. Seeing Helmeppo unconscious Luffy extended his Observation range and found Nami a floor below him. He quickly dashed back down the stairs and saw Nami entering a room.</p><p>“Hey Nami!” Luffy greeted causing the orangette to jump as she whipped around and slapped Luffy across the face. “Ow! What was that for?”</p><p>“You startled me! I didn’t expect you to appear behind me!” Nami fumed as she rubbed her hand, Luffy was apparently rather durable.</p><p>"Shishishi, sorry Nami!" Luffy grinned. “What are you trying to get from here anyway?”</p><p>“A map of the Grand Line.” Nami smirked. “I'll be able to make a ton robbing pirates there.” Luffy grinned in excitement as he followed Nami to look at the safe in the wall. “Damn.” Nami groused. “That'll take me a while to crack. It's a newer model than most.” Luffy grinned at her before opening and closing his right hand, cracking his fingers in the process. She gasped as Luffy jabbed his fingers at the seam along the safe’s door. With the shriek of bending and breaking metal Luffy ripped the door clear off the safe and tossed it onto the large desk in the room; Captain Morgan’s desk to be precise, which just so happened to ruin all of the man’s paperwork that was lying out.</p><p>“One open safe, just like you wanted!” Luffy smiled while Nami stared at him incredulously with her eyes bugged out. Beri marks replaced her eyes once she spotted all the cash inside the safe.</p><p>“I think I may actually want to keep you around.” Nami proclaimed as they started loading their pockets with as much cash as possible. Luffy laughed as she started going through the papers inside the safe once she had every single Beri she could carry stuffed in her various pockets. “It's not here! Why?! It’s supposed to be here!” Nami grumbled before she held up a single sheet of paper. It read, ‘It's my map now.’ There was an image of a Pirate Jolly Roger on it as well; a grinning skull with star-shaped cuts on the eye holes and a large red nose.</p><p>“Who does that Jolly Roger belong to?” Luffy questioned as he looked over Nami’s shoulder.</p><p>“The Buggy Pirates, damn them! They beat me to the map!” Nami growled.</p><p>“Well, we know where we’re going next at least.” Luffy grinned while Nami stared at him in surprise.</p><p>“What's this ‘we’ business, huh?” Nami questioned. Luffy’s laughter was the only response making the orangette pout cutely. Luffy felt a large amount of hostility down in the courtyard with his Observation and looked out the window. His eyes bugged out as he saw Coby and Zoro being held at gunpoint.</p><p>“That’s bad!” Luffy yelled before grabbing a startled Nami in a princess carry.</p><p>“Luffy what the hell are you…?” Her final words were cut off as she and Luffy vanished from the room and out the window in a bright flash of electric light.</p><p>“Fire!” Morgan ordered his men as the dozen rifles that were aimed at Coby and Zoro were about to fill them both full of holes.</p><p>“Shield!” Luffy exclaimed as a round wall of electricity appeared in front of the pirate that was suddenly standing between the Marines and the ‘criminals’. The bullets struck the shield of electricity before being repelled and falling uselessly to the ground. Nami was still trying to get her bearings as she’d only seen a bright light and smelled ozone before she was somehow at the base of the tower and watching everything that was going on. “Shishishi, that's my nakama and a helpful coward you were trying to shoot." Luffy chuckled. Coby didn’t know whether to collapse to the ground in depression or relief at Luffy’s arrival.</p><p>“What was that?!” Zoro demanded with shock covering his face.</p><p>“I’ll tell you later!” Luffy stated and quickly tore the ropes off the post. “Here are your swords as promised!” Zoro grabbed and secured them in his haramaki eagerly.</p><p>“This Straw Hat isn't normal.” Morgan growled as he cracked his neck, “He must have eaten one of those Devil Fruits. No matter, anyone who defies me must perish! Charge!” He ordered his men.</p><p>The Marines drew their swords with loud battle cries. Zoro's eyes narrowed as he stepped from the post and drew all three of his swords, one in each hand and the last one in his mouth. His three clashed with and easily blocked every single Marine sword.</p><p>“None of you move if you want to live.” Zoro threatened as he eyed Luffy. “Since I’m resisting, I’ll officially be labelled an outlaw now.” He ground out, even with a sword handle clenched between his teeth. “I'll join your crew!” Luffy grinned and pumped his fists in the air. “Good guy…bad guy…none of that matters anymore! I'll be the World's Greatest Swordsman! If you get in my way, then I'll have to cut you down too!”</p><p>“Shishishi, that's my line. I'm going to be King of the Pirates! If you can't manage something that small I'd be embarrassed.” Luffy grinned.</p><p>Still by the base of the tower, Nami stared before shaking her head. ‘What the hell am I thinking, Luffy’s strong…but not that strong.’ She lamented in her mind. With a powerful swing of his swords, Zoro flung every single Marine trying to kill him backwards into the dirt. They all dropped their swords as they hit the ground and rolled.</p><p>“We can't beat these two, Captain! They're too strong!” A Marine informed Morgan as he struggled to get up.</p><p>“This is an order…anyone that had those thoughts will turn their guns on themselves and pull the trigger! I do not need weak subordinates!" Morgan roared out getting shocked looks from his soldiers. The Marines pulled their pistols with trembling hands and tears in their eyes before holding them to their own heads.</p><p>“What just happened?” Nami questioned herself. Luffy was suddenly where Morgan had been standing and Morgan was on his back several feet away. Luffy had vanished in a rush towards Morgan and before he could even react, the man took a powerful right fist to the stomach. He flew backwards with a pained yell and his body bounced off the ground twice. Trying to pull himself up Morgan came face to face with Luffy who slammed a fist into the captain’s jaw so hard even Morgan's metal jaw was left with an imprint of Luffy’s fist.</p><p>“Trash like you doesn’t deserve authority.” Luffy growled at the corrupt Marine.</p><p>“You damned brat!” Morgan roared as he swung his axe horizontally at Luffy, aiming to bisect the pirate in one blow.</p><p>“Luffy!” Nami, Zoro, and Coby all screamed in horror as the axe drew closer to their friend/captain. The dull thud of the axe made Nami look back as she’d turned away to avoid seeing Luffy’s demise.</p><p>“No way…” Nami trailed off, unable to believe what she was seeing.</p><p>“Man, you’re a real let down, moron.” Luffy intoned as he held back Morgan’s axe with his bare palm. Very close inspection would reveal an almost transparent haze of Haki protecting Luffy’s palm from harm. But no one on this island even knew about Haki so it would remain undiscovered.</p><p>“How…?” Morgan tried to ask only to receive another punch from Luffy. The punch landed square in the sitting Morgan's chest. His sternum cracked, and blood flew from his mouth. He fell back into the dirt and stopped moving. Luffy pulled his fist back and raised it in victory, his smile as wide as anyone had ever seen it.</p><p>“What the hell are you?” Zoro questioned his new Captain in shock.</p><p>“I ate the Goro Goro no Mi! I'm a Lightning Man!” Luffy turned and grinned at his new nakama. Nami came rushing over to Luffy and his eyes bugged out as she raised her hand and slapped him across the face as hard as she possibly could. Luffy’s head was suddenly facing the other way with a bright red mark already forming on his face.</p><p>“You jackass!” Nami screamed at him. “How dare you make me worry about you?!” Tears of both fury and relief fell from her eyes. Luffy stared at her in shock, the red mark from her slap spreading across the left side of his face.</p><p>“Nami I’m sorry…” Luffy tried to apologize, even though he wasn’t sure what for, but she didn't let him.</p><p>“I don’t want to hear it!” Nami yelled at him before stomping away. Luffy had no idea what to do in this situation.</p><p>Before anything else could be said, a hysterical cheer rang through the base, “Captain Morgan has been defeated! We're free!” Every single Marine shouted in joy as they threw their hats into the air.</p><p>“Did everyone here actually hate Morgan?” Coby wondered before he smiled happily. At least not every Marine in Shells Town was corrupt.</p><p><strong>-</strong>Later – Ririka’s Restaurant-</p><p>“Hmph!” Nami turned away from Luffy for the third time as he tried to apologize.</p><p>“I said sorry.” Luffy mumbled like a child being scolded. He'd been trying to apologize to Nami for the better part of an hour, while still eating as much of the free food that Ririka was preparing for them in celebration of Captain Morgan’s defeat as possible. “I told you I was a Lightning Man. I even told you I was really strong!”</p><p>“Moron!” Nami's angry eyes drilled into his own and made him feel bad for upsetting her. “I didn't even think Devil Fruits were real until yesterday! Never mind the fact that you’re apparently axe-proof! You didn’t mention that at all! I thought you were going to be cut in half!” This was how the last hour had been for Luffy, a lot of apologizing and a lot of anger from Nami.</p><p>“Ah, now that hit the spot!” Zoro happily patted his stomach. “After three whole weeks, I was starving!”</p><p>“What happened to lasting the whole month?” Luffy grinned at his new nakama.</p><p>“How in the hell are you eating more than me?! You didn’t starve for weeks!” The green-haired swordsman growled at his new Captain. Luffy had been stuffing his face since they’d gotten there an hour ago. It was a mystery where all the food was going to in his toned fighter’s body.</p><p>“Even I ate a lot…sorry.” Coby spoke up while sheepishly rubbing his head.</p><p>“It's no problem! You're our town's heroes! Eat as much as you like!" Ririka, Rika’s mother, smiled happily as she continued to clean the dishes.</p><p>“You're so strong, Big Brother Luffy!” Rika praised staring at Luffy in amazement. The pirate grinned at the girl while playfully ruffling her hair.</p><p>“That’s right, I forgot to ask, where are we heading next?” Zoro questioned after finishing off his drink.</p><p>“To get Nami’s map from the Bug Pirates! Or was it Mug Pirates?” Luffy pondered as he tried to remember the name of the pirates Nami mentioned.</p><p>“Idiot!” Nami's fist bopped him on top of the head, though far more gently than she’d done several other times in the past hour. “It’s the Buggy Pirates! Pay attention when people are talking!”</p><p>“I was close the first time.” Luffy mumbled only to stop talking and look away when Nami turned her glare on him.</p><p>“The Captain of the Buggy Pirates has one of the highest bounties in East Blue. But after what I’ve seen today, I think we can handle it.” Zoro nodded as he leaned back in his chair. The door of the restaurant opened before another word could be spoken. A bearded Marine was standing in the doorway, arms behind his back. It was clear that he was there in an official capacity.</p><p>“Good day. I am sorry to interrupt, but as Marines, we must know. Are you pirates?" The Marine asked.</p><p>“Yep.” Luffy confirmed with a nod of his head.</p><p> “You're way too honest.” Nami sighed, her hand covering her mouth to hide the small smile on her lips.</p><p>“I see.” The Marine replied with a sigh. “You all are the town's heroes! We will be eternally grateful to you for deposing Captain Morgan!”</p><p>“I feel like there’s more to this than a simple thank you.” Nami mumbled. Luffy grinned at her with a chuckle.</p><p>“Indeed. As you are Pirates, we cannot allow you to stay here any longer. We will not report you to Marine Head Quarters, but you must go immediately.” The Marine explained formally. The townspeople shouted and booed at the Marines. They shouldn't kick the town’s saviors out!</p><p>“That's fine.” Luffy replied as he stood up. Zoro and Nami got up as well. “We were just leaving anyway.”</p><p>“Hold on a moment.” The Marine beckoned. “Isn't this kid with you?” He asked pointing towards Coby.</p><p>“Nope.” Luffy replied getting back up as Zoro and Nami shook their heads as well.</p><p>“Why has he been hanging around you since you got here then?” The Marine questioned.</p><p>“Shared a boat to get here. Didn’t mention we were pirates until after we docked.” Luffy replied with a shrug while Nami nodded along.</p><p>“Very well, please leave immediately.” The Marine nodded as Coby tried to hold in his tears. Luffy had covered for him! He may be a pirate but he was truly Coby’s friend.</p><p>The small pirate crew of three reached the docks with grins on their faces. “Nice job, Luffy.” Zoro clapped him on the back as they prepared to set sail.</p><p>“Shishishi. Coby will have to make it on his own from here on out.” Luffy laughed. “It'll be a good lesson about not being a coward. Pirates won't take it easy on him.”</p><p>“We're ready to go! Heading towards Orange Town!” Nami declared their course since it was the last known location of the Buggy Pirates. As they sailed away, Coby's voice rang out one last time.</p><p>“Luffy! Thank you! I'll never forget you for the rest of my life!” Coby saluted them. Nami and Zoro were stunned as more Marines lined up behind the boy, their salutes identical to the pinkette’s.</p><p>“Coby! Let’s meet again someday!” Luffy waved as the group of Marines got further and further away.</p><p>"Marines saluting Pirates." Nami mumbled with a shake of her head. “Now I've seen everything.”</p><p>“This has been a weird day.” Zoro finished with a nod.</p><p>“You have good friends, cadet.” The Commander said to Coby. He only got a strong nod from the boy. “Soldiers! We have just saluted Pirates and violated the code of the Marines! As punishment, we shall not eat for the rest of the week!”</p><p>“Sir! Yes Sir!” The Marines chorused back as one.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>There we go! Managed to finish Shells Town in one chapter! How do you like some world building? Will Luffy and crew ever run across the Kuro Kari? Will Luffy explain why he’s ‘axe-proof’? Will there be more crew members? Are other crew mates the same or are they different? Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Orange Town and the Clown</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! The crew is heading for Orange Town to get the map to the Grand Line! A certain clown is about to have a really bad day!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 6 – Orange Town and the Clown</strong>
</p><p>The trio of Luffy, Nami, and Zoro were sailing towards Orange Town. This was the last known location of the Buggy Pirates who’d stolen a map to the Grand Line. Luffy was eager to head towards the Grand Line and Nami wanted the map to be able to get to the Grand Line and rob pirates there. Since he was still trying to convince his new orangette nakama that she was his Navigator; and Treasurer if she wanted the position, Luffy was going to get that map for her!</p><p>“Can I eat more yet?” Luffy whined as Nami was literally sitting on the seat that doubled as their small boat’s cargo hold. She was being stingy with the food. Saying something about it taking a few days to reach Orange Town and having to make the food last.</p><p>“No!” Nami yelled at the straw hat wearing pirate for the twelfth time in the last hour. “We still have an entire day of sailing before we get close to Orange Town and I’m not letting you eat all of our provisions!” Honestly the idiot was a glutton! Zoro had a healthy appetite and Nami ate full meals herself. But Luffy? Luffy would go through a week’s rations in a single meal if he was allowed to.</p><p>“Stingy!” Luffy pouted as he looked away and out across the ocean. Nami still refused to admit that she found that pout cute! Zoro was drinking from a bottle of booze he’d taken from Ririka’s restaurant and chuckled at the antics between the two.</p><p>“Well excuse me for not wanting to starve!” Nami roared back with shark teeth.</p><p>“Hey Luffy, you said you were a Lightning Man back at the base. Does that have something to do with you being axe-proof?” Zoro questioned as he’d decided to break up the two’s bickering over the food.</p><p>“Huh? Oh not really, I mean I guess I’m technically axe-proof because of my fruit, but I didn’t need my Devil Fruit to stop that lame attack.” Luffy grinned as he held up his clenched fist.</p><p>“If it wasn’t your fruit then what was it?” Zoro asked curiously as he looked towards his new Captain.</p><p>“It’s called Haki. It’s something that people can awaken when they go beyond their mental and physical limits. Though according to the Marine that trained me and my brothers some people are naturally born with the ability to use a form of it on rare occasions. I already plan to teach it to all of my crew members. It’s pretty much a requirement if you want to make it in the Grand Line. More so the second half than the first, at least according to Shanks.” Luffy explained as he grinned while Nami and Zoro could only quirk and eyebrow at him.</p><p>“So this, Haki, is like some kind of special ability then?” Nami inquired getting a nod from Luffy. “What does it do besides making you axe-proof?”</p><p>“A few things, it has three forms, Observation, Armament, and Conqueror’s. People usually have an affinity to either Observation or Armament, but with enough time and training anyone can use both. Conqueror’s is an inborn thing, only one in every million or so people have it.” Luffy informed as he smiled at his nakama.</p><p>“So just from the names I’m assuming Observation makes you more aware of your surroundings and Armament toughens you up so that you can stop an axe with your bare hand?” Zoro mused getting a nod from Luffy. “So what does Conqueror’s do then?”</p><p>“That’s harder to explain.” Luffy grimaced. “It’s basically a powerful blast of the person’s will. Anybody that gets caught in the blast that has a weaker will ends up unconscious.”</p><p>“Did your teacher have it or something? You sound pretty sure of yourself.” Nami mentioned as she leaned back in her seat.</p><p>“He might have, but he never told us for sure. I know because we found out that I have it. It’s really hard to train it though. I couldn’t do anything with it for years after discovering it. Now I can at least direct it at people, but I’m sure that’s only scratching the surface. I just don’t know any other way to use it though.” Luffy shrugged as he also leaned back against the edge of the small boat.</p><p>“So you can use all three then?” Zoro asked getting a nod from Luffy. “You said you wanted to teach us but you also say it takes years of training, pushing your mental and physical limits past the breaking point. So how long do you think we’ll be sailing until we can use it?”</p><p>“Well I was just going to do what Gramps did to the three of us.” Luffy grinned making both Nami and Zoro look at him suspiciously.</p><p>“What was that, exactly?” Nami questioned not liking the grin on Luffy’s face.</p><p>“Brute force method!” Luffy laughed as he stood up and raised his fist!</p><p>“Hell no!” Nami yelled at him with shark teeth. “No way in hell am I letting you hit me!”</p><p>“If it’s the fastest way.” Zoro shrugged as he stood up.</p><p>“I don’t have to hit you.” Luffy stated looking at Nami confused. “Gramps only hit us to make us get used to having Haki faster.”</p><p>“Then what are you going to do?” Nami demanded with her arms still in front of her defensively.</p><p>“Don’t pass out!” Luffy smiled before his face went dead serious.</p><p>“What?” Nami tried to ask before she and Zoro were both hit with what felt like a wave of force. Zoro almost felt his knees buckle from this unexpected feeling. It was crazy, was he being forced down or was this feeling of pressure just in his head? Was he shaking? Why? Looking up at his Captain, Zoro came face to face with what he could only call strength. Luffy was looking dead at them both with a look that practically screamed ‘Submit!’ into their bodies.</p><p>“What…the hell?” Zoro grunted out his head starting to pound. Nami wasn’t fairing any better. She was too close to Luffy, this pressure in her head or was it her body? It was too much. The world was suddenly too small with Luffy in it. Her body trembled and her head was starting to spin. She was cold but sweating? Terrified yet unable to move. Her vision was starting to swim. No! She couldn’t fall! If she fell there was no way she could save her village.</p><p>“That was great! I knew you two could do it.” Luffy grinned and as suddenly as it appeared the pressure was gone. Zoro sank to his knees panting while Nami sat shaking with her eyes wide open as if they refused to blink.</p><p>“What…what was…that?” Nami forced herself to stutter out as she tried to get her body to stop shaking. Zoro also looked curious as he stared at Luffy dead on.</p><p>“Shishishi! That was Conqueror’s Haki! If someone that hasn’t awakened their Haki is exposed to it and manages to stay conscious the most likely result is that the person’s Haki awakened in response.” Luffy answered with a grin. Both Zoro and Nami were slowly getting over the feeling that they’d been exposed to and were starting to move.</p><p>“I don’t feel any different.” Nami mentioned as she stood up. She started looking over her body as if trying to spot some change.</p><p>“I’m not noticing anything either.” Zoro commented as he stretched.</p><p>“Of course not, it takes some time before you’ll notice. The best way is to start with some meditation. I sucked at this part so Gramps just fought with me a lot more than Ace or Sabo!” Luffy admitted with a smile. Nami sighed at that, of course an energetic child of a person like Luffy wouldn’t be able to sit still and meditate. Zoro merely nodded and assumed the meditation pose he’d learned back on his home island while studying under his swordsmanship sensei. Nami grumbled but sat back down on top of the cargo seat. No way was she letting Luffy have a chance at eating all of their provisions while she was meditating.</p><p>Almost an hour later Luffy flicked a spark of static at Zoro. Before the spark reached him the swordsman jerked his body to the side. Unfortunately he wasn’t near fast enough to dodge and grit his teeth as he received a shock. Thoroughly broken out of his meditative state he watched as a spark was sent at Nami. To both Luffy and Zoro’s surprise the orangette actually dodged the spark by tilting her body to the right as the spark flew off the boat and dispersed shortly afterwards.</p><p>“That was good, Nami!” Luffy praised as Nami sent him a glare, though the Navigator still puffed up slightly in pride. She’d felt the change in the air when the electricity was coming towards her. With barely a spare thought she’d moved to avoid the charged air she could feel headed towards her.</p><p>“So you just start becoming more aware of your surroundings as you get better?” Nami questioned getting a nod from Luffy.</p><p>“That’s how it starts, after you get more practice in you’ll be able to predict a person’s moves before they start making them. You’ll even be able to hear their ‘voice’ and track them down.” Luffy explained in the same way he’d had it explained to him.</p><p>“Voice?” Zoro raised an eyebrow at the term.</p><p>“That’s the best way I can describe it. Every person has their own unique ‘voice’ when it comes to how your Haki perceives them. With training you can extend this range and know where anyone or even multiple people are in an area.” Luffy nodded getting impressed looks from Zoro and Nami.</p><p>“How do you train Armament then?” Zoro asked. He had a feeling he’d be far more suited to this form of Haki.</p><p>“Fighting and training! I was good at this one! Shishishi!” Luffy laughed as Zoro grinned. That was something the swordsman could do. “I know! I’ll show you two!” Luffy nodded as he pounded his fist into the palm of his other hand gently. “Nami use your staff things and hit me!”</p><p>“How did you know I had those?” Nami growled at him making Luffy take a step back with wide eyes. “Were you being a pervert and peeking up my skirt at some point?” She demanded as she pulled out her staff and assembled it fluidly. She was fully prepared to bash Luffy’s head in if he had been taking a peek without her notice.</p><p>“No, I felt them when I carried you down the tower; they’re hard to miss when you aren’t standing up straight. You can see the outlines through the fabric.” Luffy explained getting Nami to glare at him for a moment longer. With a huff she leaned back and waited for him to explain his request.</p><p>“So you just want me to hit you?” Nami asked getting a grinning nod from Luffy. “Alright, you asked for it!” With a smile of her own she swung her staff at Luffy’s head. Luffy never lost his grin as he moved back just slightly and the very end of her staff missed him. Nami grimaced as she swung again only for Luffy to turn around completely and still dodge her swing. Going for a thrust didn’t change the outcome as Luffy just moved his body to the side slightly. What was confusing and impressing both Zoro and Nami was that Luffy had his eyes closed the whole time!</p><p>“One more Nami! Full power swing this time!” Luffy stated as he turned around and opened his eyes. Nami swung with all her might and connected with Luffy’s raised arm causing a loud smacking sound. Luffy didn’t even flinch and stood there as if nothing happened at all.</p><p>“How?” Nami gaped at him while Zoro looked on in interest. “You’re not even bruised!” She exclaimed looking at the spot she’d struck on his arm.</p><p>“That’s Armament! It’s basically a suit of invisible armor around your body. It strengthens your strikes and can even be channeled through a weapon! You can even hit Devil Fruit Users with it! Even if their power would normally make a hit ineffective Haki nullifies that aspect of a Devil Fruit Ability.” Luffy explained with a grin as he opened the cargo seat Nami had been sitting on and took out a piece of dried meat.</p><p>“Hey!” Nami yelled angrily as she saw Luffy taking food. A swing of her staff landed on Luffy’s back to little effect other than him grimacing and moving away from the cargo seat. “Stop trying to eat all our provisions damn it!” Nami yelled at him.</p><p>“Stingy!” Luffy pouted as he swallowed down the dried meat. Zoro chuckled at the antics of his new crew before asking something else.</p><p>“So what did you mean by your fruit making you axe-proof?” Zoro questioned getting Luffy to perk up again.</p><p>“I can show you! Nami hit me again!” Luffy demanded only for Nami’s staff to already be heading towards his face. To the surprise of both of his nakama Nami’s wooden staff passed straight through Luffy’s head in a flicker of sparks.</p><p>“What the hell was that?!” Nami screamed as she looked at Luffy like she’d never seen him before. Even Zoro seemed perturbed by the sight.</p><p>“Shishishi! I’m lightning! You can’t just hit lightning, silly!” Luffy laughed while Nami stared at him more. “Wood is non-conductive so I had you use your staff so you wouldn’t get shocked.” There was a term Luffy had been forced to memorize. He still remembered having to learn the term and items that it applied to. Though, Luffy being Luffy, he only remembered two of them, wood and rubber.</p><p>“So nothing can hit you unless you let it?” Zoro asked just to make sure he understood.</p><p>“Only Armament Haki and things that are non-conductive.” Luffy nodded as he flopped back against the side of their small boat. “The more you work on your Haki and gain experience with it the faster it grows. You two should keep practicing Observation while we sail.”</p><p>“Sure, not like we have anything better to do.” Zoro shrugged as he got back into his meditation form.</p><p>“I’m staying right here so you don’t eat everything!” Nami glowered at Luffy before closing her eyes and evening out her breathing.</p><p>“Fine.” Luffy pouted as he pulled his hat over his eyes and dozed off.</p><p>-The Next Day-</p><p>“Are we there yet?” Luffy whined getting a tick mark to form on Nami’s head.</p><p>“No! Stop asking!” Nami roared at him while bopping him on the head with her fist.</p><p>“Ow!” Luffy complained as he held his head.</p><p>“You’re the one that ate the most of our food so you have no right to complain!” Nami growled at him. They should have had enough food for three people to last the entire trip! But Luffy was such a glutton she’d let him have a little extra here and there just to keep him from whining. “Until we make it to Orange Town we’re out of food! So shut up and keep an eye out!” She ordered the straw hatted pirate.</p><p>“Is that it?” Zoro questioned as he pointed at a small island on the horizon.</p><p>“Let me check.” Nami replied as she got out her map and checked the last point she’d placed them at when she’d checked their course. “Yep! That should be the island where Orange Town is located. It’s not very big but it’ll have what we need to restock. Plus the Buggy Pirates should still be on this island or somewhere in the waters not too far from here.”</p><p>“I’ll zap over there and get some food!” Luffy cheered before his face met the floor of the small boat courtesy of Nami’s fist.</p><p>“Like hell! You ate most of our food so you aren’t getting a damn crumb until I’ve eaten you glutton!” Nami yelled with shark teeth while Luffy rubbed his head.</p><p>“Aww come on, Nami!” Luffy whined only for Nami to put him in a headlock.</p><p>“No! If I let you go there won’t be any food in the whole town by the time me and Zoro make it there!” Nami growled as she tightened her hold around Luffy’s head. Zoro could only chuckle as he watched Luffy whine to an uncaring Nami as they sailed closer to the island. Just under thirty minutes later the trio were landing at the island’s docks and disembarking. It was hard to miss the large ship at the other end of the docks. It actually looked like someone had set up a circus tent on a ship and the Jolly Roger flying from the top mast let everyone know whose ship this was.</p><p>“Seems like the Buggy Pirates are still here.” Zoro mentioned while Luffy and Nami nodded. The three set out into the town proper quickly noticing its abandoned state. Not a single person remained in the town at all. Several of the buildings clearly showed signs of having been broken into and ransacked.</p><p>“There’s not a single person in this whole town.” Nami muttered before turning grim. “You don’t think they’re all…”</p><p>“If they are this Buggy guy won’t live to see tomorrow!” Luffy promised with a growl of his own getting Zoro and Nami to jerk their heads towards him. The look on Luffy’s face was one of pure rage, nothing like his everyday cheerful look at all.</p><p>“Luffy?” Nami questioned hesitantly.</p><p>“Don’t worry about it Nami, I just hate it when people that call themselves pirates wipe out towns like this. There’s no damn point! Just take what you want and leave, killing is only for when you’re attacked!” Luffy rumbled, almost like thunder now that Nami thought about it.</p><p>“Not every pirate thinks that way, Luffy.” Zoro mentioned with a grunt as they entered a house that didn’t look to be ransacked yet. They needed to eat and all the shops they’d passed had been emptied already. With a sigh the three set about the houses’ kitchen filling plates with whatever food they could find and filling their stomachs.</p><p>“Where do you think the Buggy Pirates are holed up at?” Nami questioned as she finished off her second helping. Luffy had just finished his fourth and Zoro his third.</p><p>“Hang on, I’ll check.” Luffy stated before closing his eyes a look of concentration on his face. It was a moment later when Luffy’s eyes opened and he spoke. “They’re partying in the tavern about four streets up from this house.”</p><p>“Was that Observation?” Zoro asked getting a nod from Luffy. Nami looked impressed, though she wouldn’t admit it out loud. That was a very useful ability to have, the fact that Luffy was already teaching it to her made her give him a few more points in the ‘Not a Scumbag Pirate’ category.</p><p>“Shall we go get Nami’s map?” Luffy questioned rhetorically getting a grunt from Zoro and a smile from Nami. The three left the house only to hear a loud boom and watch as an entire row of houses was blown apart only a few hundred feet from where they stood.</p><p>“What the hell was that?!” Nami screamed seeing the devastation left behind.</p><p>“A cannon; I think?” Zoro remarked his own eyes slightly wide at the amount of power packed into a single blast.</p><p>“I’m going to punch him even harder now.” Luffy growled as he pointed towards the docks. Nami and Zoro groaned at seeing the dock where their small boat had been tied up now gone from the blast. “New plan, we're going to walk in, beat these guys within an inch of their lives, get Nami’s map, and take their treasure and a ship.” Zoro and Nami nodded as they started walking away from the house towards the tavern.</p><p>“Hey, who are you kids?” A fairly old man with glasses and puffy hair asked. The old man had brown leather armor strapped to him over a yellow shirt and a shoddily made spear strapped to his back.</p><p>“Who are you, old guy?” Luffy asked completely ignoring that the old man had asked him first.</p><p>“I'm Mayor Boodle! I'm the village chief!” Boodle answered before turning to look at a store a couple houses down the street in the opposite direction the trio had been headed. “I came by to feed Chouchou.” They old man led them over to a small, tan dog sitting proudly in front of a store with a sign that read ‘PET FOOD’.</p><p>“Why is he over here by himself?” Luffy questioned since everyone else in town had apparently fled. Boodle’s head lowered as he told the three all about how his friend had been the owner of the store before he’d gotten sick. After finding out that Chouchou’s owner had passed Nami couldn’t help but speak up.</p><p>“Why hasn’t anyone told Chouchou that his owner isn’t coming back?” Nami asked the old Mayor.</p><p>“We have, Chouchou knows my friend isn’t returning. But this store was their dream it’s a precious treasure to them both. Chouchou won’t leave it.” Boodle explained getting an understanding nod from Luffy.</p><p>“Oh the poor thing, he's hurt.” Nami gasped noticing the various injuries on the small dog.</p><p>"The Pirates come here occasionally; trying to take food from the store, they have a massive lion with them. Chouchou tries to fight them off.” Boodle growled his fists tightening until his knuckles turned white.</p><p>"You're a good boy aren't you? You keep protecting your treasure!” Luffy encouraged the small dog, getting a bark in return. Nami couldn't help but smile. Her lingering doubts about Luffy had been proven wrong one by one as she got to know him. With a sigh she let go of the last of her reservations. He may be a Pirate, but if he was the standard instead of the exception she’d have never suffered under Arlong. Maybe she should take his words to heart and not paint every pirate with the same brush.</p><p>The quartet started as they heard something huge stomping through the streets. Turning they spotted an absolutely massive lion that had green fur and a purple mane it was far larger than any average beast. It probably stood almost as tall as a man at the shoulder. Its’ fangs and claws were larger than knives and it rumbled threateningly at the four people and one dog in front of it.</p><p>A man with what looked like white fur covering his body was riding on the lion’s back. He appeared to be wearing a weird furry hat that went around his chin with teddy bear ears on top.</p><p>“You shouldn't have bit me, you damn mongrel! I’ll burn that damn store to the ground in front of you!” The man yelled out as he and the lion stopped in front of the group. “Eh, who the hell are all of you?” He demanded looking over the group. “It doesn’t matter; appearing in my way was a fatal mistake! I'm Mohji, the Beast Tamer of the Buggy Pirates! Kill them Richie!” The lion roared and swung a huge paw at Luffy but it was stopped with a single raised hand.</p><p>“That store is Chouchou's treasure.” Luffy spoke quietly as the man and the lion started to sweat having never met someone capable of stopping the lion’s power. “You weird-eared bastard!”</p><p>“This is my hair you jackass!” Mohji yelled back a vein pulsing on his forehead.</p><p>“Shut up!” Luffy exclaimed as he was suddenly next to Mohji and punching him off the lion’s back. Mohji bounced off the ground twice before coming to a stop.</p><p>“Richie! Kill him! Kill him right now!” Mohji ordered as he struggled to stand up. The lion roared as it pounced at Luffy. Luffy took a single step forward, dodging the pounce and then slammed a back fist into the lion’s jaw. A sharp crack reverberated through the street and the lion was sent flying before crashing through a partially demolished house. The impact of the large beast brought the rest of the structure down on top of the defeated lion.</p><p>"Richie!" Mohji screamed in terror, stumbling on his unsteady feet. "What the hell are you?" He questioned as he panicked. “Wait! I'll give you anything you want! I'm sorry!”</p><p>“You planned to destroy Chouchou’s treasure. Even knowing how important this store is to him. You’re no Pirate. You’re trash.” Luffy intoned before slamming his fist into Mohji’s face. The man slammed into the ground and cracked the stone road. A crunch sounded out and Nami couldn’t tell if it was from the man’s nose or from his skull.</p><p>“Serves him right.” Nami mumbled with a glare. Boodle could only stare in awe at the sight of the teen beating the lion and the pirate so easily. Nami had watched on with growing admiration for Luffy's actions. While beating the lion and the bastard with the weird hair hadn't been much of a display of the strength she knew Luffy possessed. It was still a fact that his strength awed her, but it only made her wish she was strong enough to do that herself. If she had that kind of strength she could have freed her village a long time ago.</p><p>“I'm done with this!” Boodle raged. “I can’t stand this anymore!” The old man started to shake from his fury. “Over forty years ago, I was forced to abandon my village when pirates came and destroyed it! We were all forced to watch as our homes and lives burned! But we persevered! We sailed here and started to rebuild and Orange Town has only grown since then! What right do these blasted pirates have to come and ruin all of our work! To stomp on all of our hopes and dreams?!”</p><p>“These aren't pirates. They’re trash. They're cowards, weaklings who aren't brave enough to head for the Grand Line. So they can only feel good about hurting others in the Blues." Luffy growled.</p><p>“That's what most pirates are like, Luffy; the worst type of scumbags.” Nami stated with a shake of her head.</p><p>“Well, they're about to experience being the victim.” Luffy rumbled as he cracked his knuckles. “This clown and his entire circus are about to wish they’d never set sail.” Zoro smirked and followed Luffy, Nami right behind him, but they were stopped by the Mayor’s sudden outburst.</p><p>“I'm going too!” Boodle declared his fists in front of him. “You children and Chouchou are all fighting! I have to fight too! There are some things a man has to fight for, right kid?”</p><p>“You're right.” Luffy nodded, getting a raised eyebrow from Zoro while Nami’s eyes widened. “But sometimes, it's better to rely on friends. You and Chouchou should go round up the rest of the townspeople. This won’t take too long.” He assured as he started walking towards the tavern, Zoro and Nami quickly followed after.</p><p> </p><p>The noise and music coming from the large tavern could only have been caused by the Buggy Pirates. The pirate crew was apparently still celebrating their takeover of Orange Town. Why they felt the need to blow the town apart bit by bit escaped Luffy though. Zoro had seen his fair share of sadistic pirates while bounty hunting so wasn’t too surprised by the Buggy Pirates behavior. Nami only grit her teeth having seen such wanton destruction every time Arlong lost his temper and destroyed a village on one of the Conomi Islands.</p><p>“Look at them, partying like destroying people’s lives is something to celebrate.” Nami growled before she turned to Luffy. “All of their treasure is mine. They won’t have a single Beri left when I’m done.”</p><p>“You should leave a bit of it for the townspeople so that they can rebuild afterwards.” Luffy replied as he stared up at the roof of the tavern where the party was taking place. Nami thought for a moment before nodding. Luffy had a point; these people would need a bit of money to rebuild their homes at least. Add one more point for Luffy in the ‘Not a Scumbag Pirate’ category.</p><p>“Sure, I won't take all of it. I'll see you two when you're done with them.” Nami nodded before turning to walk away.</p><p>“Huh? No, no, you have to fight too.” Luffy stated with his typical grin. Nami’s eyes went wide before she slowly shook her head. “You have to get the practice in if you want your Haki to improve. It’ll be better to start out with weak guys like this than to try and build up your experience against Grand Line pirates.”</p><p>“Bu-but!” Nami stuttered out trying to come up with reasons that this was a bad idea. She wasn't ready for frontline fighting yet! Luffy had only started teaching her Haki a few days ago! She had to focus heavily just to get the most meager results from her Observation! “I'm not a strong fighter though! I was a thief just a few days ago!” She babbled out.</p><p>“Relax. I won't let you get hurt.” Luffy smiled while placing his hand on her shoulder. "I promise. If it looks like you’re in over your head I’ll step in. Besides, you're really good with that staff, I doubt most of these guys have even half your experience.”</p><p>“I, well, uh…fine.” Nami groused though she couldn’t help the bloom of pride that spread through her at Luffy praising her skills. A small smile formed as she assembled her staff and got ready.</p><p>“Shishishi, let's get their attention.” Luffy chuckled before raising his hand and letting off a burst of lightning that was followed by a thunderous bang. The edge of the roof exploded and sent debris flying all over the rooftop. The Buggy Pirates went into a confused panic for a moment before their Captain stepped out of a tent and barked at them to calm down. The man had blue hair, an orange captain’s hat and coat, red and white striped shirt, light green pants and pointy clown shoes. His most notable feature was the large bright red nose on his face.</p><p>“Who the hell are these flashy bastards?!” The Captain roared angrily staring down at the trio on the street.</p><p>“Who told you that those colors went together?” Nami cringed at the sheer clashing of the man’s colorful outfit.</p><p>“These flashy nobodies come in and ruin my party. Then they insult my clothes to my face. I'm so mad I can barely speak.” The clown's face was pure anger as he clenched his fists.</p><p>“Captain how about I go down there and teach these fools a lesson?” A man with long dark hair asked. He wore white pants and shoes with no shirt. He had a large, long white-and-blue checkered scarf wrapped around his neck though.</p><p>"Hey! You stupid clown! Get your stupid red nose down here so I can flatten it!” Luffy yelled out before Buggy had a chance to respond to his subordinate. Every single member of Buggy's crew suddenly had wide eyes and sweat began to run down their faces. Buggy trembled for a moment, his own jaw clenched so tight you could almost hear his teeth grinding.</p><p>“Fire the Buggy Ball! Fire!” Buggy roared out his face a rictus of rage. A cannon was rolled over to the edge of the rooftop and aimed at Luffy. It fired a moment later with a thunderous boom.</p><p>“Luffy! Get out of the way!” Nami panicked as she dove for safety while Zoro stared at his captain in disbelief. Was Luffy planning to take the shot because he was lightning?</p><p>“Cannonball?” Luffy laughed as he raised his hand and snatched the red metal ball out of the air. “You think this little thing will do anything? My gramps threw rocks heavier than this at me for training! He threw them a lot faster too!”</p><p>“What the hell is this flashy bastard?!” Buggy screamed as his eyes bulged out in shock.</p><p>“Here you can have this back!” Luffy laughed and with a strong pitch threw the red cannonball back at the Buggy Pirates. The explosion was even louder than the one they had heard before meeting Chouchou and Boodle earlier. The entire tavern collapsed from the force of the blast ending up as a heap of broken wood and stone.</p><p>“Luffy you moron!” Nami yelled as she wrapped her hands around his neck and started shaking him back and forth in an attempt to throttle him. “What if the map and treasure were up there?!”</p><p>“Shishishi, sorry Nami.” Luffy was unconcerned with the feminine hands wrapped around his neck. This only made Nami shake him harder at his laughter.</p><p>“You know, whenever you say you can do something that sounds impossible, I think I’m just going to believe you until proven otherwise.” Zoro smirked as he watched the smoke begin to clear from the rubble.</p><p>“Nami, you're up first. I don’t think I took them all out with their own cannonball.” Luffy stated as he effortlessly freed himself from her grip.</p><p>“Are you absolutely sure I have to fight?” Nami gulped before an idea came to her and she grinned slyly. With a noticeable sway to her hips she sauntered over to the Lightning Man. Once she stood directly in front of him she bent at the waist. She knew her white and blue shirt was fairly conservative even though it did show off her figure well. But she also knew that the neckline was low enough to offer a teasing view of her nice, in her opinion, large breasts. A good view of her bra clad cleavage had gotten more than one idiot robbed of his money before. “You know, if you let me just go rob them, I could be persuaded to buy you some tasty meat~.” She breathed out teasingly knowing Luffy’s weakness towards his favorite type of food.</p><p>“You won’t get any stronger without practice. Your Observation also won’t improve without experience.” Luffy stated with a raised eyebrow getting Nami to pout before she noticed the quick glance he’d taken at her girls. Now if she could only figure out what the small amount of drool on the side of his mouth was caused by, her or the promise of meat, she’d feel like she’d scored at least a small victory.</p><p>Suddenly he pulled her into his chest just as her ears picked up the sound of wood snapping. She turned and her eyes bugged out. In Luffy's hand was the broken bolt of a crossbow. 'That was aimed at me! I could have just died!' The thought raced through Nami’s mind and caused her to shake slightly. Luffy's eyes were colder than the grave as he eyed the pirate in the clown get-up that had just fired his crossbow at Nami. The man began to tremble horribly as he locked eyes with Luffy.</p><p>“Do that again and I’ll kill you.” Luffy threatened the pirate as the broken wooden bolt in his hand dropped to the ground while he held Nami. The man fell face first into the dirt while foaming at the mouth a moment later. Nami buried her face into Luffy’s chest and wrapped her arms around his torso. Her shivering lessened as he gently rubbed her back. After a few moments to calm down, her composure returned and she gave him a gentle squeeze. The smoke and dust from the collapsed tavern was clearing up as the two separated.</p><p>“Look at these flashy punks, acting like they aren't afraid of us.” Buggy was holding up two of his burned crewman with disembodied hands. His handless arms were crossed in front of him, while his hands were free floating.</p><p>“He has a Devil Fruit!” Nami stated her eyes wide.</p><p>“What the hell are you doing, you bastards?!” Luffy roared angrily. “How could you use your nakama as shields like that?!” Both older pirates ignored the straw hat wearing teen.</p><p>“This is the biggest humiliation our crew has ever faced, Captain Buggy.” The black-haired man was holding yet another crewmate, a rather fat one, in front of him as his shield. The rest of the crew that weren't unconscious roared in agreement as they all pulled out various weapons; clubs, swords, knives and even a few pistols. The clown themed pirates raised their weapons in the air while roaring out their battle cries.</p><p>Luffy seethed at the Buggy Pirates. He was sorely tempted to take them all out in a single blast of lightning, but he knew Nami would need this experience. His Navigator needed to realize that she could be just as strong as she wanted to be. Luffy knew she could take out these nobodies and even if she stumbled, he was going to be keeping watch over her fight.</p><p>“Don't worry, Nami, I'll jump in if you can't handle it. I won’t let them hurt you.” Luffy grinned. “Just think of your reward after we finish up! Most of their treasure will be yours! Shishishi!” Nami’s eyes lit up and Luffy swore they actually looked like Beri symbols for a moment.</p><p>“What do you mean our treasure, you flashy thieves?!” Buggy roared with his eyes bulging out of his head.</p><p>With a roar the pirates charged forward and Nami sharpened her senses as much as possible. Feeling the telltale widening of her perception that came with her Observation activating, she leap forward and swung her staff at the closest pirate. The man went down instantly as Nami’s staff slammed into his ankle. The loud crunch that followed indicated that it was probably broken. With a spin to dodge another pirate that tried to stab her from behind, she whipped the man across the face sending blood flying as he lost teeth.</p><p>‘This isn’t as hard as I thought.’ Nami mused to herself as she brought her staff forward in a thrust straight into another pirate’s crotch. The man fell with a sharp squeak before losing consciousness. A brief awareness of someone approaching from her blind spot had Nami taking two steps back as a club smashed into the ground where she’d been standing. A quick swing of her staff into the back of the man’s head laid him out next to his crewmate. ‘These guys are nothing compared to what Luffy can do.’ She thought as she smacked a pirate’s dagger out of his hand with her staff before flicking the end upwards and nailing him in the jaw.</p><p>A brief fault in her newly acquired Observation let a pirate get close to her and she stumbled backwards to avoid the knife that almost gutted her. With a twist of her body her staff caught the man in the ribs. The sharp thwack was followed by the pirate wheezing heavily as the wind was knocked from his lungs. The next thing the pirate knew was darkness as Nami brained him over the head as hard as she could. Hearing several pistols cock behind her made Nami turn quickly. Four pirates glared at her with their pistols trained on her form. With a grimace Nami realized she’d gotten cocky and had let her Observation fade.</p><p>“Die!” One of the pirates roared as they all moved to shoot the orangette. Four flashes of bright light sent spots across Nami’s vision for a moment. When they faded all four pirates were on the ground with smoke coming from holes in their heads. Turning to face Luffy she smiled seeing the straw hatted teen with his fingers in the classic ‘gun’ position.</p><p>“Thanks Luffy!” Nami smiled as she turned back to the last few pirates and charged them. The first swung his club horizontally only for Nami spin to the opposite direction of his swing and crack him across the temple. The last two tried to rush her with their own clubs while screaming battle cries. Nami skipped back a few steps before leaping to the side and breaking the first pirate’s knee with her staff. The man crumpled to the ground roaring in pain his leg off at an odd angle. The final pirate panicked and threw his club at Nami’s head. With a huff Nami casually dodged the impromptu projectile and closed in on the pirate. A power swing into the man’s stomach folded him over and had him vomiting all over the ground. “Yuck!” Nami grimaced as she leaped away from the puke.</p><p>“You damn bitch! I’ll make you pay for harming my crew!” Nami heard a roar behind her. She spun to look, eyes widening in terror as she saw the dark-haired man rushing towards her with his sword aiming to kill. She tried to move but knew she wouldn’t be fast enough. She closed her eyes apologizing to her sister for failing to save Cocoyashi from Arlong in her mind. The sound of metal meeting metal rang out causing Nami to open her eyes and smile in relief. Zoro was standing in front of her, casually holding the pirate’s blade away from her with one of his own.</p><p>“Oi! What kind of swordsman attacks from behind? Don't you have any honor?” Zoro questioned the long-haired pirate before sending him backwards with a swipe of his sword. The two pirates stared each other down while Nami backed away from the ensuing fight.</p><p>“That was great Nami! I told you that you could do it.” Luffy laughed as he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and spun her around in celebration. Nami let out a startled yelp before realizing what was going on and giggling lightly.</p><p>“Thank you Luffy.” Nami smiled as she leaned back into his chest with a sigh. The fight with the pirates hadn’t been very long, but she definitely wasn’t used to fighting large groups by herself. Luffy obviously didn't mind be used as a resting post and simply held Nami while watching Zoro’s fight.</p><p>“You…you're Roronoa Zoro!” The black-haired man exclaimed as he looked the green-haired man over. They all finally noticed that, yes, this weirdo was riding a unicycle of all things. “My name is Cabaji, Chief of Staff of the Buggy Pirates. As another swordsman, I look forward to taking your head.” With that Cabaji sprang forward, racing towards Zoro on his unicycle. “Acrobat Technique: Old Man's Flame!” Zoro jerked back in shock at the sudden gout of fire. Thanks to the distraction Cabaji's foot lashed out, the pointed toe of his shoe striking directly into Zoro's ribs.</p><p>“What the hell was that? Tricks and kicking? You really don’t have any honor as a swordsman, do you?” Zoro had quickly gotten back to his feet, glaring at the man all the while.</p><p>“Honor? I have no need for that. All I need is victory! Acrobat Technique: Murder Case in the Hot Spring's Steam!” Cabaji laughed before he started spinning and hopping around on his unicycle kicking up a cloud of dust.</p><p>"This guy is ticking me off.” Zoro growled trying to use his newly learned Observation to sense his opponent. A blade shot out of the cloud which Zoro blocked with his left sword. Then came another kick, but Zoro had almost felt it coming. With a quick step back the kick missed entirely. Zoro's eyes darkened as he saw Cabaji through the thin cloud of dust. “You bring shame to swordsmen everywhere, you weak coward. Facing all three of my swords is more honor than trash like you deserves but I’m ending this now.” Before Cabaji could retort he heard Zoro make his attack. “Oni Giri!”</p><p>Cabaji's left shoulder, left side, and right arm opened up in a spray of blood. Zoro appeared behind the falling man who was unconscious before he even hit the ground.</p><p>“Cabaji!” Buggy called out in horror as he watched his Chief of Staff fall in battle.</p><p>“Shishishi, nice fight Zoro.” Luffy congratulated his swordsman.</p><p>“That wasn't even worth my time. What a clown.” Zoro commented with a snort.</p><p>“You flashy bastard thieves.” Buggy's face was shadowed by his hat. “How dare you do this to my crew? I'll kill all of you.”</p><p>“We're pirates, you ugly red nose.” Luffy retorted as he stepped away from Nami and started walking towards Buggy.</p><p>“Don’t talk about my nose, you bastard!” Buggy raged. “What is your goal, huh? Why did you come here?”</p><p>“We're here for your treasure and the map you stole.” Nami demanded with a smirk.</p><p>“Hand them over, big nose.” Luffy ordered the older pirate with the promise of violence in his tone if Buggy didn’t comply.</p><p>“Gyahahahaha! The Grand Line isn't a place for you no name rookies. What are you planning on doing there? Sightseeing? Don't make me laugh.” Buggy roared out loud getting Luffy to come to a stop.</p><p>“I'm going to become the Pirate King.” Luffy stated dead seriously, as if him acquiring the title was already a foregone conclusion.</p><p>“You flashy idiot! You? The Pirate King? Then I’ll be God! The person who will acquire all of the world’s treasures is me!" Buggy screamed out with his eyes bugged out and his teeth resembling a shark’s.</p><p>“Shishishi, like I'd listen to a lecture from an ugly red nose like you. Let's just get this over with.” Luffy chuckled as he got into his fighting stance.</p><p>“You bastard!” Buggy roared as he gripped a knife between each of his fingers and aimed both of his fists towards Luffy. “Bara Bara Cannon!” The clown cried out launching his fists forward to impale the annoying punk. Only the punk wasn’t where he’d been a split second ago. A sudden hit to the side of his face sent Buggy rolling along the ground.</p><p>“Man, you’re not very smart are you? Who gives their opponent time to react by announcing their attack?” Luffy questioned as Buggy struggled to get back to his feet. “I mean, I could understand it if you weren’t in a pitched battle. Or maybe if you just outclassed your opponent so much that it didn’t matter. But right now definitely isn’t the time to be doing it.”</p><p>“I’ll kill you.” Buggy growled as he brought his still floating hands back around to stab Luffy from behind. Luffy smirked as he easily evaded the sneak attacks from Buggy’s floating hands with only minimal movement. Buggy, seeing Luffy dodge in a way he was familiar with from his time spent aboard the Oro Jackson, broke out into a flop sweat. “How? How does some no name pirate like you know Haki?” His answer was Luffy suddenly appearing in front of the clown pirate in a flash of blue-white light before taking another punch to the face.</p><p>“I learned it from my gramps.” Luffy shrugged before Buggy got back up.</p><p>“I’ll still kill you Straw Hat!” Buggy yelled with far more confidence than he was feeling. Another flash of light and Luffy’s sandal clad foot was smashing into Buggy’s chest and launching the clown down the street.</p><p>“I doubt it.” Luffy replied without a care, as if he was discussing the weather instead of a life and death fight. “This is really disappointing actually, so I’m just going to end it.”</p><p>“Just try it.” Buggy spit out as blood leaked from his mouth. He immediately knew he shouldn’t have opened his mouth when, in another flash of blue-white light Luffy’s palm was smashing into Buggy’s stomach.</p><p>“Argh!” Buggy screamed out as he was shocked by the ball of lightning Luffy was holding in his hand.</p><p>“This is the time when you can announce a move.” Luffy laughed before launching Buggy into the far distance and off the island with a cry of. “Goro Goro no Bullet!” Buggy was quickly nothing more than a twinkle on the horizon while Luffy raised his fist in victory.</p><p>“That was pretty anticlimactic.” Zoro commented as he and Nami walked over to Luffy.</p><p>“Shishishi!” Luffy laughed as Nami grinned and playfully bumped him with her shoulder as she passed.</p><p>“Well, I’m going to get started on taking, almost, every scrap of treasure they have. I bet they’ll have the Grand Line map with the treasure too!” Nami smiled as she started heading over to a tent that was set up behind where the tavern used to stand. It seemed rather suspicious and Nami would bet that it was Buggy’s place to store the loot he’d pillaged.</p><p>“Hey, looks like the old Mayor got the rest of the townspeople like you asked.” Zoro nodded towards the incoming group of people. Luffy looked over and saw the forms of Boodle and Chouchou leading the group towards them.</p><p>“You think they’ll give us some food for getting rid of Buggy?” Luffy questioned with his rumbling stomach giving its agreement to that statement.</p><p>“Nami was right, you really are a glutton.” Zoro sighed with a shake of his head. Though he wouldn’t turn down a drink right about now either.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Buggy went bye-bye! Now it’s onward to the Gecko Islands and Syrup Village! Will Usopp still be the same cowardly liar? Will Kuro still have his plans? Will the Straw Hats still be able to acquire the Going Merry? Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Gecko Islands, Usopp the Lying Gunman</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of Logia Brothers! What will our crew of three find in the Gecko Islands? A new crewmate? A ship? An enemy? All of the above?</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 7 – Gecko Islands, Usopp the Lying Gunman</strong>
</p><p>Luffy, Nami, and Zoro were on the open seas once more. Having left Orange Town loaded with supplies and a small boat provided by the grateful townspeople. It was a bit rickety but it was all the people had left after Buggy had blasted their docks and ships to pieces when he’d taken over the town. Nami was humming happily while counting the Beri and examining the treasure she had managed to steal. The orangette smiled as she examined a bracelet made of solid gold and studded with diamonds. “Well, I have to give that clown some credit, there’s not a single fake among all this treasure. All of it is real gold, silver, and gems. This haul is worth at least eight million Beri!”</p><p>“Shishishi!” Luffy chuckled as he sat next to her and looked over the haul. Nami grinned before leaning against him slightly. “So, you happy with the haul?” He asked with his large grin.</p><p>“Yep!” She smiled while raising her fist into the air. “This trip has been great! I've gathered over ten million Beri since I met you! I'm so close now!”</p><p>“We'll have to make sure you get all that you need then, won't we?” Luffy laughed as he put his arm over her shoulders. Nami smiled and leaned against him fully, actually relaxing for the first time in quite a while. Not even thinking about Arlong could bring her mood down right now. Not when she was finally close to her goal of one hundred million Beri. Doubly not when she’d just watched Luffy effortlessly beat one of East Blue's top Pirates. He hadn’t even needed his Devil Fruit to win and only used it to send Buggy across the horizon to make a point!</p><p>An emotion that Nami hadn’t felt in almost eight years was blossoming in her chest, Hope. It had been absent since Arlong came along and took over the Conomi Islands. Since he’d killed her mother and enslaved her and all the people of her home archipelago. She could almost laugh that the one who’d given her Hope again was the childish man she was leaning against. She was getting comfortable before she felt Luffy tense up.</p><p>“Boat!” Zoro called out lazily while pointing to a larger boat headed in their direction. They all eyed it curiously as it came closer, making out three men standing at the bow of the boat. The most notable thing about the larger boat was that it had Buggy's Jolly Roger raised proudly.</p><p>“This is Captain Buggy’s turf! We'll be taking all your valuables. So hand them over now!” The apparent ‘leader’ ordered as the three pulled out weapons. Luffy grinned before taking his arm from around Nami’s shoulders, said orangette frowning slightly.</p><p>“Well, from where I’m standing it looks like you three have something that belongs to us.” Luffy grinned before spotting a wooden chest sitting against the wall of the small cabin the larger boat had. “Make that two somethings.”</p><p>“The hells are you talking about? I said hand over your valuables!” The lead pirate demanded. Luffy just grinned while Zoro looked on amused and Nami sighed.</p><p>“Well, I guess we’re just going to disagree.” Luffy chuckled before he was suddenly in front of the lead pirate and slugging him in the face. The loud crack that rang out, just before the man was lifted off his feet and sent flying into the ocean several meters away, most likely meant that Luffy had crushed the other pirate’s face. The other two pirates were barely able to react before the one on the left was kicked so hard he too flew off the boat. The fact that blood was flying from his mouth was probably not a good sign for him. The one on the right took a similar back fist to the face that Richie the Lion had back in Orange Town. It was unfortunate that the human pirate didn’t have the large lion’s durability. He too was sent skipping across the ocean’s surface multiple times before sinking below the waves.</p><p>“I counted four skips, Captain, pretty good.” Zoro complimented as Luffy stood on the deck of their now larger second boat.</p><p>“Shishishi!” Luffy chuckled before he took the eight steps he needed to cross the deck and stand in front of the wooden chest he’d seen earlier. “Nami, I got you a present!” He exclaimed as he lifted the chest, finding that it weighed a fair amount, and showed it to his Navigator. Nami was quickly standing in front of Luffy and the chest with Beri symbols in her eyes. Luffy set the chest back down on the deck so that Nami could open it.</p><p>“Thank you, Captain~” Nami outright purred out Luffy’s title making the straw-hatted teen feel tingles going up his spine. Nami grinned and gave him a wink when she noticed the slight tremor of Luffy’s body. “Now let’s see what we’ve got here!” Opening the chest Nami’s eyes once again turned to Beri symbols as gold, jewelry, and even some large Beri notes were piled inside. “Score!” She cheered as she started sorting through it with a happy giggle. Luffy sat behind the laughing orangette and chuckled as she leaned back against him as she took all of the Beri notes and started counting them. Nami didn’t protest when she felt Luffy’s arms wrap around her waist as she leaned back against him, if anything she relaxed more and started to hum happily while counting the bills.</p><p>“Glad you like it.” Luffy chuckled as he watched Zoro tie the two boats together so that the smaller boat didn’t drift away. Though it appeared Zoro was more than ok with staying in the smaller boat as the swordsman had already stretched out and was napping. Oh well, they’d already done some Observation training this morning, so they could just have another training session in the afternoon.</p><p>“Those morons had a nice haul. Eight hundred thousand in Beri notes and this gold and jewelry should be about one and a half million.” Nami cheered about an hour later; with a grin she snuggled back into Luffy’s chest and smiled when she felt his arms tighten gently around her waist. “So…we should probably get ourselves an actual ship now. I’m sure this sail is going to attract all sorts of negative attention.”</p><p>“It is pretty ugly.” Luffy stuck out his tongue at the Buggy Jolly Roger on the large black sail. “I would torch it if we had an extra to replace it with.”</p><p>Nami grinned and patted him on the head, drawing her attention to the straw hat he always wore. “What’s the story with this hat, I’ve never seen you not wearing it, is it important to you?”</p><p>“This hat belonged to Shanks. It was his precious hat…his treasure! He got it from his own Captain back when he was just a cabin boy!” Luffy smiled fondly remembering the story Shanks had told him about the hat. “When I decided to have a crew of my own and be even better than him he gave it to me. Shanks told me to return it to him when I became a great pirate. It’s a promise between men!”</p><p>“He sounds like a great guy…” Nami sighed before laying her arms over his that were wrapped around her waist. The orangette had a bittersweet smile on her face for a moment as her mind thought of a ‘what if’ scenario. ‘It’s too bad he didn’t stop by Cocoyashi when he was still in the East Blue.'</p><p>Luffy picked up on her shift in mood with the passive Observation he constantly kept up, so he gently whispered in her ear, which drew a pleasant shiver from the orangette. “Nami, you're my nakama. If there is anything you ever need, I'll do it for you. You just have to ask.”</p><p>“Thank you Luffy.” Nami smiled lightly taking a deep breath before she continued. “I just need some more time…I have to make sure…that nothing will happen to you.”</p><p>“Whenever you’re ready Nami. I’ll be here, ready to help you.” Luffy promised the gentle whisper making her shiver pleasantly again.</p><p>“Thank you Luffy…thank you.” Nami smiled as she leaned her head back on his shoulder.</p><p>“So where are we heading next?” Luffy inquired several minutes later. He had been holding Nami the whole time and the orangette Navigator didn’t seem inclined to move if she could help it.</p><p>“Our destination is the Gecko Archipelago, more specifically the southern most of the Gecko Islands, where the town of Syrup Village resides. It’s a small town but it makes its living off of fishing and selling the syrup they produce from the trees on the island. They should have someone that could part with an actual ship. If not we can move on to the next island in the archipelago and look there. So long as we stay away from the north eastern islands where the Marine Branch is located we should be fine. The faster we find a ship though, the faster we can be on our way and avoid any patrols that the Marines have going.</p><p>“Shishishi, you’re an amazing Navigator, Nami!” Luffy praised making Nami puff up in pride.</p><p>“The best in all of the East Blue.” Nami smirked before she sat up and turned to face Luffy. “Since you got me such a nice present how about I give you a little reward?” She asked with a sexy smirk.</p><p>“I didn’t give the treasure chest to you for a reward, though. I gave it to you because I knew you’d like it.” Luffy replied with his head tilted slightly to the side.</p><p>“That just makes you more deserving of a reward.” Nami giggled as her right hand went to the hem of her blue and white shirt. “Don’t you want your reward?”</p><p>“I guess so…” Luffy started only to trail off as Nami’s right hand pulled the hem of her shirt upwards. The Lightning Man could only watch as more of Nami’s smooth skin was revealed as the shirt was slowly pulled up. He could see her midriff, and then her entire stomach, Nami paused just under the swell of her bust making Luffy look at her face.</p><p>“Close your eyes, Captain~” Nami purred and Luffy instantly complied. A second later and Luffy felt a flick to his forehead and opened his eyes. Nami was giggling as she turned and walked into the small cabin. “Naughty, naughty Luffy!” She teased as she stuck out her tongue and then closed the cabin door. Luffy sat there on the deck, stunned and also confused.</p><p>“Was that what they call a ‘tease’?” Luffy wondered as he scratched the side of his head. He quickly got over it when he realized that Nami wasn’t keeping their provisions of food guarded at the moment. “Time for a snack!” Nami would realize her mistake only a few minutes later and Luffy would once again be introduced; face first, to the deck of the boat.</p><p>-Four Days Later-</p><p>“How is it, that we had so many food provisions that we almost didn’t float, and yet you still somehow managed to eat everything a day before we got to our destination?” Nami growled at Luffy while sitting on the straw-hatted pirate to prevent him from ‘zapping over’ to the island they’d spotted so that he could fill his bottomless pit of a stomach.</p><p>“I just like food.” Luffy whined from under his Navigator.</p><p>“So do I, but you don’t see me eating ten people’s worth in a single meal you glutton! So, once again, you don’t get a damn thing until after I’ve eaten!” Nami growled with shark teeth.</p><p>“Hey, could you two stop flirting and help me moor the boats?” Zoro asked as Nami looked up realizing they were in the shallows already. Her face turned slightly pink before she turned away from Zoro and grabbed one of the ropes. A short time later and the two boats were safely secured to the shore and Zoro turned to his crewmates. “So what should we do about those guys that have been watching us this whole time?” The green-haired swordsman asked as he pointed at three kids and another teen that were, poorly, hidden by a large log up on the nearby cliff.</p><p>“Ahh! They see us!” The three kids screamed running away towards their homes.</p><p>“Hey! Don’t run away!” The black-haired teen with the long nose yelled out to the retreating kids.</p><p>“What’s this about?” Nami wondered watching the teen stand up from behind the log.</p><p>“I’m the notorious, Captain Usopp! Feared pirate and ruler of this village! You should think twice if you’re planning to invade! I have eighty million men ready to stop you!” The long-nosed teen stated as he stood with his arms crossed.</p><p>“Liar.” Nami deadpanned making Usopp panic.</p><p>“Damn! She saw through me!” Usopp held his head with his hands.</p><p>“See? You just told me.” Nami sighed with a sweat drop.</p><p>“Crap! I admitted that I lied!” Usopp twisted his body back and forth in his panic at having been called out.</p><p>“Hahaha! You’re funny!” Luffy laughed at the reactions of Usopp.</p><p>“Hey! Are you laughing at me?!” Usopp demanded. “I’m a proud man! That’s why they call me ‘Proud Captain Usopp’!”</p><p>“Didn’t you just say you were the ‘Notorious Captain Usopp’?” Zoro questioned, making Usopp’s eyes bug out.</p><p>“Forget about that!” Usopp yelled before they all heard the loud rumble of Luffy’s stomach.</p><p>“You got anywhere to eat on this island?” Luffy asked getting Usopp to sweat drop before he nodded.</p><p>“How can he eat so much?” Usopp stared in wonder as Luffy devoured his meal. The group of four now sat in a local restaurant.</p><p>“Seconds please!” Luffy called a short time later as he finished his first plate.</p><p>“More booze too!” Zoro called out as he took a swig from his bottle.</p><p>“So, you’re looking for crewmates and a ship?” Usopp asked getting a nod from Luffy.</p><p>“That’s right!” Luffy acknowledged with a grin as his second plate was put in front of him.</p><p>“Well you won’t find anything like a Galleon here, but there is one place you might be able to get a ship.” Usopp stated.</p><p>“Where’s that?” Nami inquired only to watch Usopp point out the window. Following the direction her gaze fell upon a mansion sitting on higher ground than the rest of the village.</p><p>“That huge mansion that sticks out like a sore thumb, that’s where.” Usopp replied before he explained about the owner, a sickly girl called Kaya.</p><p>“Forget it; we’ll just check one of the other islands.” Nami shook her head, and Luffy and Zoro shrugged in agreement both still eating and drinking.</p><p>“You’re still looking for crewmates, right?” Usopp asked Luffy.</p><p>“Yep!” Luffy replied with a nod.</p><p>“I’m your man! I’ll be your Captain!” Usopp stated with a thumbs up.</p><p>“No thanks.” The trio rejected instantly.</p><p>“What kind of response was that?!” Usopp yelled with shark teeth!</p><p>Shortly afterwards Usopp had run off after a rushed goodbye. Only a few minutes later the three boys from earlier burst into the restaurant demanding the return of their ‘Captain’.</p><p>“That meat really hit the spot!” Luffy exclaimed happily as he patted his stomach.</p><p>“Meat?! What…what did you do with our Captain?!” The boy called Pepper stuttered out.</p><p>“Your Captain…” Zoro grinned ominously. “Just got eaten!”</p><p>“Ahh! Onibaba!” The three boys screamed while pointing at Nami.</p><p>“Why’re you looking at me?!” Nami demanded with shark teeth. After the joke was cleared up, the three pirates learned about Usopp telling the bedridden owner of the mansion tales to cheer her up.</p><p>“So her spirits must not be low then, huh?” Luffy asked the boy called Carrot.</p><p>“Yep! All thanks to the Captain!” Carrot nodded.</p><p>“Alright then, let’s go ask her to give us a ship!” Luffy declared with his fist raised.</p><p>“Didn’t we already decide against that course of action?” Nami asked with a frown.</p><p>-At the Mansion ~ A Few Minutes Later-</p><p>“Hey! Give us a ship!” Luffy requested at a normal volume for a conversation. The only problem being that the group was standing outside the mansion’s gate and no one was around to hear him. “Well I guess we have to go in!” He exclaimed happily as he walked up to the wall next to the gate.</p><p>“There’s no stopping him now, is there?” Nami sighed as she held her hand to her face.</p><p>“Doubt it.” Zoro replied as he watched Luffy stop right next to the wall.</p><p>“Nami, you’re first.” Luffy grinned as he cupped his hands together. He was obviously intending to give her a boost to make it easier to get over the wall. While Luffy had been making Nami and Zoro meditate to help their Observation Haki develop, he’d also been forcing both of them into whatever physical exercise he could that would fit on their two small boats. Nami had tried multiple times to get out of the training with her feminine wiles but this was, apparently, something Luffy wouldn’t be moved on. Much to Nami’s chagrin and her body’s soreness. While Nami was agile and quick on her feet, a fount of strength she was not. Luffy intended to make her strong enough to take care of herself even on the Grand Line. Zoro was readily taking to the training and was looking forward to getting an actual ship so that he could get more training and sparring in with Luffy. Their Armament Haki training was currently being slowed a great deal simply because they lacked the space to train.</p><p>“Fine.” Nami huffed before she walked over and put her right foot in Luffy’s cupped hands. Luffy easily supported her full body weight as he lifted his arms up until Nami could easily reach over the top of the wall. With a grin Luffy grabbed Pepper and Carrot while Zoro grabbed Onion and they both nearly vaulted the entire height of the wall. Setting the kids down they were led to where they could hear Usopp’s voice. They found the long-nosed liar talking to a pale blonde girl at her window.</p><p>“Captain!” The boys called out and Usopp turned to them in shock.</p><p>“What are you guys doing here?” Usopp asked with a gasp.</p><p>“They told us to bring them here.” The boys responded while pointing at the trio of pirates.</p><p>“Who’re you?” Kaya asked as Luffy grinned.</p><p>“You must be the Lady of the mansion.” Luffy approached. “I have a request for you.”</p><p>“A request for me?” Kaya asked curiously.</p><p>“Yeah! We were hoping you had a big, sturdy ship we could have.” Luffy explained only to be interrupted by a man in a black suit.</p><p>“What is the meaning of this?” The man demanded as he stalked towards the group. “You all realize you’re trespassing, right?!”</p><p>“Klahadore!” Kaya exclaimed.</p><p>“What’s this guy’s problem?” Luffy wondered as he watched the man approach. This Klahadore was apparently the Head Butler of the mansion and did not approve of any of them being on the premises. After insulting Usopp’s father for being a pirate and getting punched by the teen all of them had been forced to leave by the butler. A while later the three pirates were discussing what had just occurred and how it affected their plans.</p><p>“Something was off about that butler guy.” Nami mused as she thought over the encounter. She’d snuck her way into more fancy parties than just the one on the cruise ship where she met Luffy after all. She’d never seen a servant act with so much force and authority towards their employer.</p><p>“His words and his ‘voice’ don’t match up either.” Luffy mentioned making Zoro and Nami turn to him for an explanation. “He speaks rudely, for a butler, but he still talks like a servant. His ‘voice’ however is far different; it’s sharp and full of violence.”</p><p>“So you’re saying he’s only playing at being a rich Lady’s servant?” Zoro asked getting a shrug from Luffy.</p><p>“Possibly, he could have some kind of martial background too, I guess, maybe a former bounty hunter or something?” Luffy shook his head uncertainly.</p><p>“He’s definitely suspicious.” Nami nodded before Luffy pushed off the fence they were leaning against.</p><p>“I’m gonna go talk to Usopp, I think I know something he’ll want to hear.” Luffy grinned as he made his way to where he heard Usopp’s ‘voice’.</p><p>Luffy found Usopp sitting on the edge of a cliff at a shoreline that looked almost identical to the one they’d landed on that morning. Seeing the long-nosed teen brooding Luffy went and sat beside him. Usopp looked over but didn’t react much beyond the initial shock of being found. The two talked and Luffy revealed that he knew who Usopp was.</p><p>“You’re Yasopp’s son, aren’t you?” Luffy asked and Usopp nearly fell down the cliff in shock.</p><p>“You know my dad?” Usopp asked incredulously. He hadn’t seen his old man since he was about four after all. The only ‘contact’ he’d had was a single package he’d received shortly after his tenth birthday.</p><p>“Yep, he talked my ear off about you when Shanks and his crew stopped by my home island.” Luffy explained getting an even more shocked look from the liar. Luffy filled Usopp in on what his father had been doing ten years ago when he’d last seen him. Usopp couldn’t be prouder to know that his father was the Master Gunner of a Yonkou’s crew. Luffy perked up when he sensed the presence of two people down on the beach. One he’d recently encountered but the other was completely new to him.</p><p>The butler from before was talking to a strange man in a dark blue coat, a matching hat, and a pair of heart-shaped glasses. Listening in the two learned of the butler’s true identity and his nefarious plan for Kaya. Needless to say Usopp was freaking out, but how could he not be? That was Kuro down there! Kuro of a Thousand Plans! He was an infamous pirate with a sixteen million Beri bounty that was believed to have been captured and executed three years ago.</p><p>“We should deal with them.” Luffy spoke to Usopp only to feel Usopp’s ‘voice’ suddenly getting farther and farther away. Looking over Luffy noticed Usopp disappearing over the hill at the end of the cliffs already. The liar’s thoughts were so loud Luffy could literally ‘hear’ them with his Observation.</p><p>‘I’ve got to warn the village! I’ve got to warn Kaya!’ Usopp screamed in his mind as he dashed as fast as he could towards the village.</p><p>“Damn it, Usopp! Now isn’t the time to panic!” Luffy grumbled as he made his way after the running teen. It was only a moment later that Luffy realized just how fast Usopp could move when he was motivated. “Where was this earlier?” He wondered as he ran down the path only to come across Nami and Zoro who were both curious as to why Usopp had just bolted past them a few seconds ago. Luffy stopped to explain the situation which took several minutes.</p><p>“So should we go find Usopp or try and go after this butler?” Zoro questioned with a thoughtful look on his face.</p><p>“We’re outsiders on this island. No one here will take our word over the fake butlers.” Nami shook her head.</p><p>“Usopp is coming back.” Luffy stated as he turned his head to where the weakened ‘voice’ was coming from. The trio saw an exhausted Usopp stumbling up the path clutching a bleeding wound near his shoulder.</p><p>“Nobody believed me.” Usopp lamented as he sat in a chair inside his small house. Nami was disinfecting his wound with the first-aid kit Usopp owned while Luffy and Zoro sat around and listened to the teen’s attempts to warn the villagers and Kaya about Kuro.</p><p>“Of course not, you say this kind of stuff all the time, even I’ve heard the story of the ‘Boy Who Cried Wolf’ before. Why did you think they’d believe you now, even when you tell the truth?” Zoro asked the long-nosed teen with a scoff.</p><p>“I’ll have to stop the invasion on my own then! With the right preparation not a single pirate will make it to the village!” Usopp declared a fire in his eyes to protect his home island.</p><p>“Nah, we’ll help you.” Luffy grinned, making Usopp stare at him in shock.</p><p>“Really? You’d really help me protect the village?” Usopp asked.</p><p>“Yeah, we’re friends, right?” Luffy questioned with his head tilted.</p><p>“So what can you guys do?” Usopp questioned the three.</p><p>“I shock!” Luffy stated making sparks appear from his palm.</p><p>“I slice.” Zoro spoke as he partially unsheathed Wado Ichimonji.</p><p>“I steal.” Nami grinned.</p><p>“I hide.” Usopp finished.</p><p>“You’re fighting too!” All three pirates yelled at the liar.</p><p>-The Next Morning ~ Just Before Sunrise-</p><p>“With this oil slick they won’t be able to make it up this slope. We’ll be able to pick them off from up here.” Usopp stated confidently as the group of four stared down at the oil covered slope.</p><p>“Are you sure this is where they’ll be attacking from?” Nami asked as she looked out at the horizon as the sun began to rise. She didn’t see any ships in sight at all.</p><p>“They had their meeting here, so I assumed this is where they’d invade from.” Usopp responded getting a deadpanned stare from Nami.</p><p>“What about the slope we docked at?” Nami questioned tersely.</p><p>“Oh crap! No one in the village has used that beach in almost ten years! I didn’t consider that!” Usopp screamed making Nami growl at him in frustration as they both started running to the other slope.</p><p>“This is was a waste of time then?” Luffy asked making Zoro groan while nodding. The two quickly started after Nami and Usopp but were slowed down by Luffy having to keep going back and grabbing Zoro who, for some odd reason, seemed to be making random turns through the forest they were running in.</p><p>-At the Opposite Slope-</p><p>“Captain Jango! This boat has treasure in it! I think it’s worth around ten million Beri!” A Black Cat pirate cheered while holding up the large bag he’d found.</p><p>“What, ten million! That’s great! We’re already making money!” Jango celebrated before the pirates noticed a teen at the top of the slope they were preparing to charge up. He had brown overalls and a green bandana over his hair and goggles over his eyes. Strapped to his back was a rifle and on his hips four pistols were holstered.</p><p>“I’m the great Captain Usopp! I rule this village! If its money you seek then you may take that treasure and leave!” Usopp called out to the group of pirates.</p><p>“We don’t need your permission fool! We’ll take the treasure AND ransack the village!” Jango yelled back getting a cheer from the rest of the Black Cat pirates.</p><p>“What the hell did you just say, Usopp?!” Nami roared as she punched the liar in the back of the head sending him face-first into the dirt.</p><p>“Ow! What was that for?!” Usopp screamed as he held the back of his head.</p><p>“You!” Nami yelled pointing at the pirate that still held her bag of treasure. “Put that back where you found it or I’ll kill you!” She threatened while practically spitting fire.</p><p>“We don’t have time for this.” Jango groaned as the sun was already almost fully above the horizon. “Charge! We must strike during sunrise if we’re to keep to the plan!” With a cry the large group of pirates brandished their weapons and rushed up the slope towards the two teens.</p><p>“No you don’t, damn it!” Usopp roared and Nami turned towards the furious liar only to see something amazing. Usopp pulled two of his pistols and fired from the hip, a single shot from each gun. Before Nami could even blink both pistols had been tossed into the air and Usopp had drawn the other two and fired them as well. In what could only be described as some kind of rapid juggling, Usopp was firing four pistols at nearly the same time by himself. After twenty four rapid-fire shots Usopp’s pistols were empty and two dozen pirates lay on the slope injured or dead.</p><p>“What the hell was that?” Nami questioned stunned beyond belief.</p><p>“Quick draw mixed with trick shooting and a bit of juggling.” Usopp explained as he holstered all four of his pistols. “I can only do that because these pistols my old man sent me are South Blue Revolvers.” Usopp pulled the rifle from his back and Nami noticed it looked different from any rifle she’d ever seen. Seeing her look Usopp told her what it was. “South Blue Repeating Rifle.” Seeing the Black Cat Pirates stunned Usopp gave them another warning. “Leave! Or I blast the rest of you too!”</p><p>“What the hell are you afraid of?!” Jango screamed at his subordinates. They were literally trembling from a damn teenager! “He’s out of ammo! He can’t do that again!” Seeing his men still looking unsure he growled before pulling out his chakram pendulum. “Look at this ring…” He began as all the Black Cats turned to look at the swinging ring.</p><p>“What the hell are they doing now?” Usopp questioned only getting an unamused look from Nami.</p><p>“Hypnotism? Really? They think that’ll help?” Nami tsked as she readied her staff.</p><p>“Raagh!” The Black Cat pirates suddenly roared out together. The men that had just been terrified were now screaming and smashing rocks with their raw strength while only the whites of their eyes showed.</p><p>“What the hell?!” Nami exclaimed in shock. There was no way that had really made them stronger, right?!</p><p>“Nami, I only have fifteen shots with this rifle. There are about forty of them left so we’re going to have to get up close and personal.” Usopp whispered as he was clearly fighting his own trembling. “I’ll make these fifteen count but after that I’ll have to fall back on my slingshot skills.”</p><p>“Got it.” Nami nodded as she forced herself to get ready and stop shaking.</p><p>“I’ll take that.” Jango stated as he took the bag of treasure from the hypnotized pirate that was practically growling like an animal. Turns out Captain Kuro’s suggestion of closing his own eyes before he started his hypnotism worked and he didn’t hypnotize himself anymore. “Now take care of them and attack the village!”</p><p>“I’ll kill him!” Nami roared as she saw Jango holding her treasure. The crowd of Black Cat pirates came charging with even greater speed than before. None of them seemed capable of fear or caring that they were trampling some of their injured crewmates to death as they charged.</p><p>“Bastards!” Usopp roared as he fired his first shot and then worked the lever to eject the spent cartridge and load the next. Fifteen shots went off in rapid succession. Fifteen more pirates now lay dead or dying on the slope but the remaining twenty five continued their charge. Usopp quickly slung his rifle across his back before pulling out a green slingshot. “Lead Star!” He called out as he let loose the ball and struck a charging pirate straight through the eye. The pirate collapsed screaming, the loss of his eye breaking his hypnotism.</p><p>“Get out of my way!” Nami roared her fury still at max as she saw Jango looking into the bag containing her treasure. She swung her staff and cracked one of the pirates across the face sending him crashing into others. Without looking back she charged past them and engaged the next pirates that got in her path. Swipes, thrusts and full power swings saw six more pirates fall with various injuries. Noticing Nami breaking away from his subordinates Jango readied his chakram and threw it at the charging woman. Nami had dropped into her Observation as much as possible and raised her staff to smack the ring out of the air. But the steel blade proved far sharper than she expected and sliced through one end of her staff. The small piece of severed wood fell to the ground as the chakram continued its path before landing on the rocky slope.</p><p>“Shit!” Jango cursed as he reached for another chakram and hastily threw it at the charging orangette. Nami barely tilted her head to the side to dodge the blade and was on Jango before he could throw his third weapon. The metal ring was smacked out of his hand by Nami’s staff. Jango screamed in pain as the staff smashed the bones in his hand and his hand hung limply unable to move.</p><p>“That’s MY treasure!” Nami screamed as she raised her staff above her head and swung it at the hypnotists’ head. Jango managed to jerk away but still took the blow to his collar bone which broke from the force of the hit.</p><p>“Fuck!” Jango cried out as the pain registered, he ran and dashed away from the enraged woman trying to get to his subordinates to have the group deal with her. But he made the fatal mistake of not dropping the treasure. Nami chased after him while Jango screamed for his hypnotized pirates to attack her. The crowd, now down to about fifteen pirates still standing, turned and prepared to charge back down the slope. Before they could fulfill Jango’s orders they all saw him take a wooden staff to the back of the head. The hypnotist smashed into the ground about halfway up the slope. Nami wasn’t going to give him the chance to get up.</p><p>“Get! Off! My! Treasure! You! Filthy! Fucking! Scumbag! Pirate! Bastard!” Nami screamed as she punctuated each word with a smash of her staff into Jango’s head. When she’d finished all of the other pirates had clearly come out of their hypnotism and looked on in fear as their Captain’s crushed head oozed blood all over the rocky slope. Even Usopp was staring in shock at the brutality Nami had displayed. Nami huffed and puffed to get air back in her lungs as she took the treasure from the limp and lifeless hands of Jango.</p><p>“She killed him! She killed the Captain!” One of the pirates cried out as the group of fifteen panicked and started running back for their ship.</p><p>“What’s this?” A man’s voice called out from the deck of the Black Cat’s ship.</p><p>“The Captain is dead?! How could this happen?!” Another man yelled from the deck. The two were revealed to be a pair of men in more cat-themed outfits, one very large and round the other appearing more average.</p><p>“Sham we can’t fail or Kuro will kill us, right?” The big man asked the smaller man.</p><p>“That’s right Buchi, so we’ll have to kill these two and ransack the village with whoever is left.” The smaller man nodded. The two suddenly leapt from the ship and landed on the beach. In a matter of seconds they’d closed the distance with Nami and were raising their claw-clad hands to slice her. Nami flinched back trying to bring up her staff to parry the claws. Thankfully she didn’t need to bother as a sword and a fist struck a cat-themed pirate each and sent them tumbling back down the slope.</p><p>“Damn it, Zoro, I told you it was this way!” Luffy yelled at his First Mate who had the decency to look apologetic, angrily apologetic at least.</p><p>“I would have gotten here!” Zoro yelled back.</p><p>“You tried to go in the opposite direction six times! We almost didn’t make it in time!” Luffy thundered as he scooped Nami into his arms and began to carry her back up the slope. Nami sighed in relief before she leaned up and whispered something into Luffy’s ear. “You sure?” He asked back getting a nod from Nami. “Zoro!”</p><p>“What, Captain?” Zoro asked as he withdrew all three of his swords after tying his bandana to his head.</p><p>“Take care of those two, Nami is going to empty their ship and I’m going to be waiting for this shit Captain of theirs to show himself.” Luffy ordered for the first time since Zoro or Nami had known him.</p><p>“Aye, Captain.” Zoro acknowledged as his eyes took on a cold sharpness and he stared down the two pirates that were getting back up.</p><p>“Did you hear that, Buchi? They want one man to ‘take care’ of us.” Sham growled as he brandished his claws.</p><p>“They said the girl wants to ransack our ship too!” Buchi growled flexing and brandishing his own claws.</p><p>“Let’s kill the swordsman first and then move on to the girl!” Sham roared as he and Buchi charged towards Zoro with their claws raised.</p><p>“Tora Gari!” Zoro intoned already behind the two brothers while Sham screamed as his, apparently thinner than normal, torso erupted into bloody lacerations.</p><p>“You bastard! I’ll kill you!” Buchi roared as he rushed Zoro. The green-haired swordsman blocked a few slashes before noticing that there was no style or finesse to the large man’s attack. It was literally just downward clawing motions over and over again. Sure they came at speed but Zoro had dealt with far faster attacks before. With a grunt Zoro knocked Buchi’s claws up and away from him and made sure to target vital areas with his counter attack.</p><p>“Oni Giri!” Zoro called as he moved past the staggered Buchi and completed the three swings of his attack. Buchi’s torso from both shoulders to his waist erupted with deep cuts, but the wound that finished the Black Cat pirate was the slash across his neck that severed both the carotid and jugular. The large man dropped instantly and couldn’t even raise his hands to try and staunch the blood flowing from his neck. In less than a minute the man was dead his blood staining the slope like so many of his crewmates.</p><p>“Good work Zoro.” Luffy praised getting a nod from the swordsman.</p><p>“Thanks, Captain.” Zoro grunted as he watched Nami climb onto the large ship of the Black Cat pirates.</p><p>“That was insane. He took out both of those guys so quickly.” Usopp stared as he looked over the slope, the remaining pirates were huddled off to the side of the slope their eyes darting between Luffy, Zoro, and their ship.</p><p>“What is going on here? It is far past sunrise. Have you really let yourselves be stopped by some children?” The cold voice of Kuro questioned from the top of the slope.</p><p>“Oh shit! It’s Captain Kuro.” One of the remaining pirates panicked while they all stared up at the man in terror.</p><p>“I’ve been waiting for you, butler.” Luffy stated getting Kuro to look at him.</p><p>“You’re that kid from yesterday. What are you doing here?” Kuro asked as he surveyed the scene on the slope. It looked like most of the Black Cat pirates were already dead. Even Jango and the Meowban Brothers were lying in pools of their own blood.</p><p>“Klahadore! Stop this!” Kaya yelled as she appeared from the forest with the three kids Onion, Pepper, and Carrot.</p><p>“Miss Kaya, you shouldn’t be out of bed.” Kuro responded as he reached into the duffel bag he was carrying. When he removed his hands he was wearing a strange set of gloves that had sword blades at the end of each finger.</p><p>“Merry told me everything! If you want my money and estate you can have it! Just stop this!” Kaya cried out, tears in her eyes.</p><p>“I was sure I’d killed him, seems I’m out of practice.” Kuro stated coldly making Kaya gasp. “Unfortunately Miss Kaya, just taking your fortune isn’t enough. What I truly desire is peace of mind.” From there Kuro explained to the girl and everyone else on the slope since he was talking just loud enough for them to hear, about why he’d faked his death and played at being a loyal servant for three years. “But seeing as these incompetent fools have managed to fail in their task; I’ll have to kill everyone on this island and disappear.”</p><p>“You call yourself a pirate? Don’t make me laugh.” Luffy stated coldly as he started walking towards Kuro. “A real pirate doesn’t run from the sea. The only time a pirate gives up their name is when they die!” He growled at the man who only scoffed at him.</p><p>“Oh please, a boy playing pirate thinks he can lecture me?” Kuro retorted before taking a modified stance that almost looked like he was standing normally. “Let me show you what a real pirate is! One that’s been on the brink of death and survived!” With that Kuro disappeared to most people’s eyes only to reappear behind Luffy his claws aimed at the straw-hatted teen.</p><p>“Is that it?” Luffy asked to the shock of everyone as he was literally holding all five blades aimed at him with his bare hand. “You’re fast, but not ‘that’ fast.” He stated while staring the older pirate dead in the eye.</p><p>“How?” Kuro questioned only to receive a punch to the face that sent him tumbling down the slope. When he stopped he noticed his right glove was still in Luffy’s hand. He’d lost one of his two ‘Cat Claw’ weapons and now had to rely on only his left hand.</p><p>“Is Captain Kuro losing?” One of the Black Cat pirates whispered to his remaining crewmates.</p><p>“We need to get the hell out of here.” Another whispered back, getting nods all around. The group slowly began to move towards their ship trying not to catch anyone’s notice.</p><p>“I see that I’ll have to kill you first, boy.” Kuro stated as he entered a different stance and started to sway back and forth. This freaked out the rest of the Black Cat pirates who yelled in terror before booking it towards their ship.</p><p>“Shakushi!” Kuro announced only to disappear. Seconds later claw marks began to appear on everything around the area where Kuro vanished. Some of the Black Cats that were injured but unable to move cried out as they were slashed and died. Luffy saw red at this blatant disregard for a crewmate’s life.</p><p>“What the hell are you doing you bastard?!” Luffy roared as he vanished in a spark only to reappear with his fist warping Kuro’s face.</p><p>“Gah!” Kuro cried out as he hit the rocky path again and struggled to stand.</p><p>“You were killing your own crew, your nakama!” Luffy accused only to have Kuro scoff again as he spat out blood.</p><p>“Nakama? These fools are only tools for my plans, nothing more.” Kuro stated as he managed to stand on shaky legs. “A pirate has no need of friends.”</p><p>“Don’t ever call yourself a pirate in front of me.” Luffy growled out. “You don’t know what a real pirate is!” With that statement Kuro saw Luffy vanish in another spark and then everything went black.</p><p>“Holy shit!” Usopp choked out as he only briefly saw Luffy appear in front of Kuro before the man’s face practically exploded in a shower of blood as Luffy’s fist crushed it. Kuro bounced down the slope and ended up at the bottom among the rocky sand of the beach. He lay completely unmoving and the Black Cat pirates that had managed to get on their ship panicked even more.</p><p>“Captain Kuro’s dead!” One yelled in terror.</p><p>“We need to get the hell out of here!” Another screamed out as the large ship began to move away from the shore. Nami took this moment to jump off the ship unnoticed with a sack thrown over her shoulder. She quickly made her way over to their two ships to put all of her treasure, new and old, back where it belonged.</p><p>“Hey, are you just leaving your crewmates behind?!” Luffy roared out to the retreating ship. A couple of the injured Black Cat pirates on the slope were still alive after all.</p><p>“Faster! We need to go faster!” Was the yell heard from the pirates on the ship that was already leaving the shallows and headed for open waters.</p><p>“Not a single damn one of you is a real pirate, A REAL PIRATE DOESN’T LEAVE HIS NAKAMA BEHIND!” Luffy roared out so loudly that everyone still on the slope flinched at the volume.</p><p>“What’s he doing?” Nami questioned before she saw Luffy standing on the beach in the blink of an eye. “What?!” The orangette exclaimed as Luffy cocked back his fist and his whole right arm suddenly erupted into a massive electrical discharge.</p><p>“RAIKEN!” Luffy thundered out throwing his fist forward towards the retreating ship. A colossal beam of lightning was fired towards the retreating ship. In the time it took to blink the beam had caught up to the large pirate ship. In another blink the ship was completely engulfed. A third blink saw the mass of lightning disappear.</p><p>“No way…” Nami trailed off in shock as she scanned the ocean for any sign of the large vessel. All that she could find as evidence that a large ship had once been there was the scattered wood floating across a wide area of the sea near the border between shallows and open sea. All of the scrap was blackened and emitting steam along with the ocean itself. Looking back towards Luffy she noticed his arm returned to normal and the anger on his face slowly disappearing. He turned towards her with a grin before speaking. “You ok, Nami?” The orangette’s chest felt like it might explode with hope and joy. ‘He could do it. He’s the one…he can help me!’ This thought ran through Nami’s mind like a train without brakes, unable to be stopped. It was a second later before she could respond to him.</p><p>“Yeah, Luffy, I’m fine.” Nami smiled at him with warmth that Luffy hadn’t seen yet. He liked Nami smiling at him like that. “Luffy, I have something I want to tell you soon, ok?”</p><p>“Hmm? Sure thing, Nami! Let’s finish this up!” Luffy grinned making his Navigator smile and nod.</p><p>“Sure thing, Captain!” Nami replied. And he was, this was HER Captain, this was the man she’d stay beside as long as she sailed.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Luffy got pissed! Black Cat pirates are gone! Nami took out Jango?! Holy shit the butterfly has definitely been flapping its wings!</strong>
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  <strong>So what did you all think about how I changed up Usopp? Still a coward but man’s up when the situation calls for it! He’s also got a few guns from his old man. South Blue is stated in manga as being far ahead of the other Blues in terms of firearm production. Mr. Five’s revolver came from South Blue according to what he says on Little Garden. I still gave him his sling shot and his trick ammo for it too! He’ll prefer to use the sling shot primarily but his first choice for a pitched, life and death, battle will be his four pistols.</strong>
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  <strong>I even already have an Epithet picked out for our lying Gunman! I hope you’ll enjoy it!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Going Merry, Nami's Request</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! With the Black Cat Pirates destroyed what’s next for the Straw Hats? A Ship? A Navigator’s request? A New Crewmate? Have their actions actually gone unnoticed?</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 8 – Going Merry, Nami’s Request</strong>
</p><p>The morning light shone down on Syrup Village and the sleepy little village slowly roused itself from slumber and prepared for the day. It looked to be another quiet day in their corner of the East Blue without anything crazy happening. The common folk that lived here would never know of the fierce battle that had taken place on the other side of their island. Nor would they ever suspect that they had almost been raided by pirates.</p><p>The Straw Hat crew were standing next to their two small boats with Kaya and her butler, Merry, as they looked upon a larger ship in the water. It was much bigger than what they’d sailed to the island in. It was a two-mast ship, one in the center of the ship with a large square sail while another was near the stern of the ship and just a bit smaller but with a triangular lateen sail.</p><p>“It's a caravel!” Nami smiled happily while looking the ship over. Luffy was bouncing on his toes excitedly while sparkles practically poured from his eyes. Zoro was even smirking appreciatively at the ship. Kaya stood in front of them, her hands clasped in front of her and a happy smile on her face.</p><p>“I told you we'd get a huge ship!” Luffy cheered making Zoro snort in response.</p><p>Merry stood before the ship with a pleasant smile. He was a somewhat sheep-like man with a few bandages covering his body from Kuro’s attempt on his life. “I'm glad you all like the ship.” He said with a smile and bow. “Thank you for all of your help.” Merry thanked the three of them as he straightened up and turned towards the ship. “She's a bit of an older style, but she still sails like a dream. I designed her myself.” He said cheerfully, “She's called ‘The Going Merry’<em>.</em> She’s a double-mast caravel class with both square and triangular sails. When the late Master and Lady asked me to design her with enough space for all the servants to sail with them I ended up having to make her a bit larger than I originally intended. But Master spared no expense and only wanted the best for his wife and daughter.” Merry smiled as he reminisced his days of serving Kaya’s parents.</p><p>“Can we really have this?” Luffy asked still bouncing around.</p><p>“Of course,” Kaya giggled while watching the man, who single-handedly destroyed a ship nearly double the size, act like an excited child. “I insist, actually.”</p><p>“So you're the one who got rid of those Black Cat Pirates? You have my gratitude as both a resident of this island and as Lady Kaya’s butler.” Merry thanked the straw-hatted pirate. The sheep-like man couldn’t help but chuckle at Luffy's indifference to anything but the ship at the moment. “Well, I should explain the steering system. Firstly, in order to adjust the yards in relation to the crew garnet…” The butler began only to have Nami place her hand on his shoulder.</p><p>“You better tell me instead, Merry. I'm the crew's Navigator.” Nami giggled while watching Luffy's childlike excitement as he jumped up to the ship's deck. After a few moments of running around the Going Merry’s deck Luffy sat on the sheepshead figurehead with a huge grin.</p><p>“I had it fully loaded! It's the least we could do for all your help.” Kaya yelled up to him. Luffy quickly leapt from the figurehead and landed next to Kaya.</p><p>“You’re awesome!” Luffy declared while Kaya accepted a hug from the excited Captain before he jumped back onto the ship.</p><p>“Ahh!” Everyone turned and looked up at the hill, where Usopp was rolling down the hill with a massive backpack strapped to him. The size of the pack meant he had probably taken everything in his house that wasn’t nailed down. Though from his current predicament it was clear that he didn’t have the physicality to haul so much weight; at least not if he wanted to maintain his balance. “Someone stop me!” The long-nosed gunman pleaded as he rolled down the hill being repeatedly squashed by his large boulder-sized backpack.</p><p>“Usopp?!” Kaya exclaimed in shock.</p><p>“Hey, what's he doing?” Luffy asked confused.</p><p>“No idea, but whatever it is, we should probably stop him before he hits the ship.” Zoro replied as he stood beside Luffy and they both stuck their feet out. Usopp rolled into their feet, face first. The gunman’s nose was the only part of his face that escaped damage, sticking out between the two shoes smashed against his face.</p><p>“Th-thanks.” Usopp gurgled out before taking off his huge bag and getting back onto his feet. He brushed himself off a bit, before giving Kaya a wide smile. “I'm setting sail Kaya…” He stated quietly.</p><p>“I know.” Kaya replied with her eyes closed. The blonde opened them and smiled brightly at him. “You'll have to make sure you have plenty of stories for me when you return!” The two stared at each other, both trying not to tear up.</p><p>“Ah, to hell with it.” Usopp muttered before stepping forward and pulling Kaya into his arms for a kiss, which the blonde happily returned. Everyone else stared at the scene wide-eyed and in various states of shock.</p><p>“Usopp, you scoundrel! Unhand Lady Kaya this instant!" Merry demanded as he pointed at the liar.</p><p>“Ish fine.” Kaya mumbled through the lip lock.</p><p>“Didn't think he was that brave.” Zoro mumbled while Luffy chuckled next to him.</p><p>“Come on you two, leave them alone.” Nami shoved both of her crewmates and directed them to the Going Merry. Though she also didn’t think Usopp would have had the guts to pull off what he’d just done. The two separated and shared a bittersweet smile together. Kaya took a deep breath before speaking.</p><p>“You should get going, Captain Usopp.” Kaya smiled, trying to hold back her tears.</p><p>“I'll make sure to bring back a bunch of stories for next time…” Usopp promised, holding back his own tears, as he turned away with resolve and headed towards the water. He waved up at the three Straw Hats as he started packing his things into his own little boat. “You guys have a safe trip! I'm sure we'll meet again someday!”</p><p>“Huh? What are you talking about?” Luffy frowned down at Usopp.</p><p>“Sheesh, that’s cold! We're all going to be pirates, aren't we? We could meet again on the high seas!” Usopp explained with a huff.</p><p>“Just get on board already.” Zoro sighed as he waved towards the Merry.</p><p>“Huh?” Usopp stood there, wide-eyed.</p><p>“Didn’t I tell you? I made you the Gunner for my crew!” Luffy smiled as he looked at the stunned Usopp. “That means you're already a Nakama!”</p><p>“You…uh…actually didn’t tell me that…at all.” Usopp muttered in shock, before breaking out into a wide grin. “I'm the Captain!” He cheered as he leapt towards the gang plank, nearly forgetting his huge bag of possessions in the process.</p><p>“Idiot! I'm the Captain!” Luffy yelled back at the excited Gunman.</p><p>“The winds are in our favor, Luffy!” Nami called out as she felt the wind and looked towards the sky. “These are perfect conditions to set sail!”</p><p>“Let’s go!” Luffy exclaimed with a huge grin as he plopped himself down on the sheep figurehead. Usopp only had enough time to set down his backpack while Zoro raised the gang plank, before they both moved below deck to raise the anchors. In only a matter of minutes the Going Merry was drifting away from the shallows and heading for the high seas.</p><p>As the ship sailed away, Kaya looked on, with both happiness and sadness. It was a bittersweet moment. “It can hurt…to lie.” She whispered though Merry was close enough to hear her.</p><p>“You didn't want him to leave, did you?” Merry questioned his Lady.</p><p>“That…or I wanted to sail with him.” Kaya admitted though she knew she was still far too frail to sail the seas right now. The blonde wiped her tears away and smiled at the horizon. “I'll have to get stronger…so that when he comes back, I'll be able to leave with him.” She straightened up with determination. “Merry, I've decided!” The wind blew and her hair was gently tussled by the breeze. “The next time I see Usopp…I'm going to be a doctor!” She turned and walked away from the shore, heading back to her home.</p><p> “An excellent choice, Lady Kaya.” Merry chuckled as he followed along.</p><p>-On the Going Merry-</p><p>“This ship is bigger than I thought.” Zoro commented as the crew was exploring their new ship. The sails were filled by the breeze and the ship was locked on course thanks to Nami locking the rudder.</p><p>“I’ll say.” Nami stated happily. The women’s quarters, previously used for the female servants of Kaya’s family, had four beds, wardrobes, vanities, and even a large table to place things on. There was plenty of space for a few other female crewmates besides Nami.</p><p>“What’re these things?” Luffy asked as he pulled on a wooden thing on the wall.</p><p>“That’s an accordion wall.” Nami stated as she moved over and grabbed the handle. With a pull the wooden panels moved away from the wall and along the track built into the ceiling. When the wall was fully extended it completely cut off one of the bed, wardrobe, and vanity sets from the rest of the large room.</p><p>“Cool!” Luffy exclaimed as he watched Nami pull the other three walls closed around the room, making one large room into five smaller ones.</p><p>“I’m sure the men’s quarters have something similar. Merry did say that the late Master spared no expense when having this ship built.” Nami mused. It turned out that she was right; the men’s quarters did in fact have a similar set up. Though there were eight beds instead of four as male servants had apparently been used for the sailing of the ship more so than the female servants had been.</p><p>The tour of the ship led them to find the water-drawing machines under both sets of stairs leading up from the main deck to the upper deck. The pedal-powered machines would suck up ocean water and force it through a filter that removed salt, particulates, and even bacteria. Nami cringed knowing that they’d have to supply replacement filters over time. Sure they weren’t incredibly expensive, but the small things added up! Thankfully they had a few dozen replacements already provided by Kaya’s stocking of the ship.</p><p>Luffy had been star-eyed throughout the tour, from the crew’s quarters, to the decks, the holds and the cannon decks. But what they found in the back of the kitchen/lounge/helm cabin made the Lightning Man burst out laughing. A large generator, also pedal-powered, and hooked up to an array of batteries that provided the power to the electric lights and fans that the four had noticed throughout the ship. Not to mention the large refrigerator that stood against the wall not far from the power supply.</p><p>“It’ll be decent cardio to power it manually, but I don’t think we’ll ever run out of power.” Luffy chuckled as he raised his hand and sparks danced around his palm. “Just have to be careful not to overload it. Shishishi.” Zoro, Nami and Usopp all got a chuckle out of this, but they were grateful to have the conveniences provided by having electricity on board. Nami was especially fond of the electric hot water heater that went to the shower and bath. A warm shower and bath everyday would be heaven while sailing!</p><p>The last stop of the tour had been the Captain’s quarters, formerly Kaya’s parent’s room on board the Going Merry. The room was large and housed a king-size bed, a desk on one wall, a large wardrobe, and even had its own full bathroom taking up one of the corners. Luffy had laughed himself silly as he launched himself onto the large bed and bounced on the quality mattress and soft sheets. With the tour over Zoro and Usopp went to pick out their own beds in the men’s quarters while Nami went to check their course and make any adjustments necessary. Less than an hour later the four pirates were standing on deck with flagons of booze raised as they celebrated their new ship and their new crewmate.</p><p>-That Night-</p><p>Night had fallen a couple hours ago; Nami was lying down in her new bed. Just like the rest of the ship it was of great quality and was incredibly comfy. She should have been happy and relaxed. But she still had to tell Luffy what she wanted, no, what she needed him to know. To make a request of her Captain as his nakama, the request that he’d already promised to do for her no matter what it may be. Just because she was his nakama and he wanted her happy.</p><p>But she wasn't happy. She’d still felt sore after the battle with the Black Cat Pirates. She’d taken down multiple grunts and in her rage had even managed to kill their hypnotist of a Captain. But then she’d almost been taken out by those cat-themed brothers before she could do anything! She’d have been dead if not for Luffy and Zoro. That wasn’t good enough! She couldn’t save her village if she couldn’t even save herself! Her blood was pounding in her ears as she heard that laugh, his laugh, 'Shahahaha!'</p><p>Nami clenched her fists and ground her teeth as she began to tremble in rage, 'Shahahaha!' she heard that damned laugh again. She had a real crew, and she had true friends. She wanted to sail with them until the end, but she would never be able to do that if she remained weak! If she remained trapped under Arlong's control!</p><p>She’d had no hope since that day Arlong and his crew came to the Conomi Islands. Not a single ray of it until she met Luffy. But now that it was here, it wasn't going away. Luffy hadn't even used his Devil Fruit against ‘Kuro of a Thousand Plans’, a pirate worth sixteen million Beri. Hell, he hadn't even tried in the fight. A single punch from Luffy had left the bastard reeling. A stronger punch had caved in the man’s face and killed him instantly. Hope was a foreign emotion to Nami, but it filled her entire body now. The pounding in her ears faded away and was replaced by a calm determination. Nami sat up from the bed, it was time; she would ask him now.</p><p>Walking out of the women’s quarters she headed to the bow of the ship. Stepping onto the main deck she spotted her Captain. He was sitting without a care on the ship's figurehead. She knew they’d already furled the sails and dropped both anchors for the night. The ship wouldn’t drift very far on the current so she could make her request in private.</p><p>"Luffy!" Nami called out getting the straw-hatted man’s attention. Luffy spun on the figurehead and then leapt down to join her on the deck as soon as he caught sight of her.</p><p>“Nami? I thought you already headed to bed for the night.” Luffy commented only to notice the look in Nami’s eyes. A mixture of determination, anger, and pleading that he’d never seen before.</p><p>“Luffy, can I tell you want I wanted to say back on the beach now?” Nami questioned.</p><p>“Sure, Nami.” Luffy nodded only to tilt his head when Nami reached out and took his hand in hers.</p><p>“Let’s go to your quarters. I want to tell you in private.” Nami stated as she led Luffy by the hand back to his room. Once there the two sat on the bed next to each other.</p><p>“What do you want to tell me Nami?” Luffy asked not use to seeing Nami in this state of determination and nervousness.</p><p>“Luffy, you said I’m your nakama, right?” Nami asked looking over at him.</p><p>“Of course, Nami, you’ll always be my nakama!” Luffy nodded sharply bringing a small grin to Nami’s lips.</p><p>“You told me if I needed you to do something for me that you’d do it no matter what. Are you sure?” Nami questioned working up her courage to ask him to risk his life for her.</p><p>“Anything you want, Nami, I’ll do it for you.” Luffy promised as he took her hands in his and turned so that they were sitting across from each other on the large bed. Nami’s gaze was locked onto the bedding she sat on, her bangs shadowing her eyes from Luffy’s view.</p><p>“Luffy…” Nami started before looking up at him her eyes burning with years of repressed rage and hatred. “There’s someone I want you to kill.”</p><p>“I’d need a name.” Luffy replied instantly his voice harder than diamond and his eyes sharp.</p><p>“Arlong ‘the Saw’.” Nami spat out and Luffy’s eyes narrowed.</p><p>“What did he do to you?” Luffy asked his tone serious.</p><p>“He and his crew came to my home archipelago almost ten years ago.” Nami started, and then found that she couldn’t stop. She told Luffy everything, how Arlong had taken over the Conomi Islands. How he’d forced the residents to pay for their lives every month. How Bell-mere, her mother, didn’t have enough money for all three of them and had sacrificed herself to buy her and her sister’s lives. How Arlong had shot her mother between the eyes in front of her. Then how her maps had been found and Arlong had enslaved her. How she’d been forced to draw maps for her mother’s murderer until she hated her own cartography skills and even hated her own dream to map the entire world. Then she’d told him about the one hundred million Beri deal that Arlong had struck with her. That he’d free Cocoyashi Village if she handed him a hundred million in cash. She felt tears start to fall when she told Luffy of her years spent thieving, hunting for buried treasures, and selling anything that she could get a good price for. She’d done everything short of selling her body in brothels or whoring herself out to the highest bidder in some Red Light District in one of East Blue’s wealthy kingdoms.</p><p>Nami finally finished and instantly noticed the tingling sensation on her skin. She felt her hair frizzing up and could smell ozone. Looking up she saw Luffy’s reaction to her past. The normally cheerful young man was replaced with a rage filled god. Luffy’s eyes were wide and full of anger, small sparks were jumping from his body and his teeth were grinding so hard she thought he might crack them. Only in the back of her mind did she recognize that even with his control being pushed to the limit by his rage, not once did Nami so much as get a shock from his power.</p><p>“He’s dead.” Luffy ground out and Nami buried her face into his chest, her anguished tears turning into tears of relief at Luffy’s declaration. “I’ll crush him, shock him, break him; he’ll understand how much you suffered before I’m done with him. You have my word, Nami.” He promised as he plotted the death of the bastard that dare hurt his nakama, HIS Nami!</p><p>“Thank you, Luffy. Thank you, thank you, thank you.” Nami let out her years of pent up misery through her tears as Luffy pulled her into a warm embrace and held her close. Over half an hour later Nami’s tears slowly came to an end and she pulled back from Luffy’s arms.</p><p>“Feel better?” Luffy asked softly and Nami nodded silently before trying to wipe the tears from her face.</p><p>“Sorry about getting your cardigan wet, Luffy.” Nami apologized seeing the wet spots from where her tears had soaked into the fabric.</p><p>“No problem, here.” Luffy smiled as he pulled his cardigan off and held it out to Nami to use to dry her eyes. Nami smiled at him before taking him up on his offer and wiping her eyes.</p><p>“Thanks.” Nami grinned once her eyes were dry. She handed the cardigan back to Luffy, but he simply tossed it into a basket near the door. Nami couldn’t help but let her eyes wander to Luffy’s body again. Since the first time she’d seen him shirtless she’d admitted, only to herself, that she found him attractive. His years of training were obvious from his defined musculature and Nami kind of wanted to run her hands over his torso. “Luffy, can I stay with you tonight?”</p><p>“Sure Nami, whatever you want.” Luffy replied and Nami grinned as she stood up from the bed and removed her shirt and bra quickly. A moment later and her skirt hit the floor too. Turning her head to look at Luffy over her shoulder almost brought Nami to laughter as her Captain’s eyes were wider than she’d ever seen them. “Nami?” Luffy questioned his eyes rapidly moving up and down Nami’s form unsure of where it was ok to look.</p><p>“Yes, Captain?” Nami giggled as she watched Luffy eventually turn his head to look at the wall.</p><p>“Why’re you taking your clothes off?” Luffy asked as he continued to stare at the wall.</p><p>“I don’t sleep in my clothes, Luffy.” Nami replied simply. “You don’t want me to be uncomfortable, do you?”</p><p>“No, but isn’t it bad for a guy to look at a naked woman that isn’t his lover?” Luffy questioned since his, and his brother’s, lessons on manners and sexual education had both come from Makino with a little help from Fuusha Village’s local doctor.</p><p>“Normally yes, but if the woman wants the man to see her…” Nami grinned sexily as she slowly turned around and let Luffy look at her in only her panties. The black-haired young man’s eyes roved up and down her form before locking onto her bare breasts. “Then it’s ok for the man to look as much as he wants.” She finished as she took a small step and crawled onto the bed.</p><p>“Big…” Luffy commented before he tore his gaze from Nami’s breasts and looked her in the eyes. “Really big.”</p><p>“Oh, do you like them?” Nami asked with a raised eyebrow as she straddled his waist and crossed her arms under her bosom. This had the wonderful effect of pushing them up and making them look even bigger. “I admit I’m a bit proud of them. I’ve been rather confident about my looks for years now.”</p><p>“Yeah…” Luffy nodded to Nami’s question making the orangette giggle. She slowly laid herself on top of Luffy her soft skin meeting his rigid muscle and her breasts pressed up against his pectorals. Nami smiled contently when she felt Luffy’s arms wrap around her lower back and hold her against his chest.</p><p>“You’re nice and warm.” Nami mumbled as she lay on top of him.</p><p>“My teacher said some Fruits have side effects like that. Lightning is super-hot so my body is a bit warmer than normal. Heat and cold don’t bother me too much anymore.” Luffy explained softly his hands gently running up and down Nami’s back leaving pleasant tingles on her skin.</p><p>“I like it.” Nami grinned at him receiving a smile in return. Nami noticed Luffy’s eyes wander to her left shoulder, where that damn mark resided on her skin, before he briefly glared at it.</p><p>“I’m going to tear his left arm off for putting that mark on yours.” Luffy stated as his hands resumed their gentle up and down motion along her back.</p><p>“I’ll enjoy seeing that far more than I should.” Nami murmured as she gently kissed his chest.</p><p>“We’ll deal with him soon. But we’ll need another crewmate before too long. Otherwise nutrition might become a problem.” Luffy replied making Nami nod.</p><p>“That’s fine; I haven’t been gone too long yet. They won’t expect me back for at least another month. Plus it would be a shame to waste that nice kitchen.” Nami agreed running her hands slowly up and down Luffy’s muscled arms.</p><p>“We’ll find the best we can; then it’s straight to your home.” Luffy promised and Nami smiled as she snuggled closer.</p><p>“Blanket.” Nami murmured against Luffy’s neck and she felt his hand move from her back for a second. The softness of the blanket soon brushed against her skin as Luffy covered them both before putting his arm back around her. “Luffy, come here.” Nami smiled as she used her right hand on the back of his head to bring his face closer to hers. Their lips met and Luffy swore he felt a jolt run through his body, which was impossible since he was a Lightning Man and electricity didn’t affect him at all. Nami moaned softly into their kiss as Luffy pressed his lips against hers to return the kiss. Neither of them had any experience, but they’d learn together. “Good night, Luffy.” Nami sighed happily as she placed her head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat.</p><p>“Good night, Nami.” Luffy yawned as he started to drift off. Usopp had just woken up for his watch shift so Luffy was free to sleep until morning now. Observation Haki was so useful in times like this; Luffy mused to himself before holding Nami a little tighter as he fell asleep.</p><p>-Gecko Islands Marine Branch-</p><p>“Emergency report! Emergency report!” A Transponder Snail blared loudly at the Gecko Islands Marine Branch startling the on duty Marine.</p><p>“Who is this? Report!” The Communications Officer ordered as he waited for the person on the other end of the line to respond.</p><p>“This is Petty Officer Brag of Patrol Ship Eight, sir!” Brag identified himself.</p><p>“You’re on Patrol Route Twelve, what’s the big emergency?” The Communications Officer questioned.</p><p>“Sir, we were performing the usual patrol for Patrol Route Twelve this morning at O’ Seven Hundred when we noticed the Belzan Black moored on the north slope of the island.” Brag reported.</p><p>“What?! Are you telling me the Black Cat Pirates raided Syrup Village?!” The Officer asked loudly.</p><p>“No sir, we maintained distance as protocol dictates when facing large pirate crews while scouting. Through our telescopes and binoculars we were able to witness the incident. A group of four repelled the entire Black Cat crew!” Brag continued his report.</p><p>“You better start making sense Petty Officer Brag, or so help me…” The Officer growled. “There is no way four people repelled a pirate crew of near sixty men!”</p><p>“It’s the truth, sir!” Brag replied. “The initial wave was repelled by a teen in brown overalls with a long nose. He did something I’ve never seen before. He was literally able to fire four pistols at nearly the same time by himself. By using some kind of rapid juggling of all things! After that Jango ‘The Hypnotist’ the current Captain of the Black Cat Pirates used his hypnosis on his own men. The remaining pirates charged at the two on the slope only for the long-nosed teen to use a rifle to take down at least fifteen more of them.”</p><p>“Are you drunk, Brag? Because what you’re telling me sounds like something you’d see right before you black out!” The Officer roared at the Petty Officer.</p><p>“No sir! I’ll stake my position and rank on the veracity of my report and all of my sailors can confirm.” Brag replied confidently.</p><p>“Fine, continue.” The Officer sighed. This report was almost fantastical already.</p><p>“Sir! After the long-nosed teen apparently ran out of ammo an orange haired woman charged down the slope and tore her way through multiple pirates with a staff. She then engaged ‘The Hypnotist’ in combat and injured him twice. The pirate tried to flee to his crew but this woman caught up to him and…well…the only way to describe it was brutal. She bashed his head in with her staff until his skull was crushed.” Brag reported.</p><p>“So you can confirm that Jango ‘The Hypnotist’ is dead? A nine million Beri bounty was killed by some unknown woman with a staff?” The Officer demanded.</p><p>“Yes sir, we can confirm.” Brag replied. “Once Jango was killed the Meowban Brothers emerged from the ship and attacked the woman. They were knocked back down the slope by a man in a straw hat and a swordsman with green hair. We believe it was Roronoa Zoro based on his well-known appearance. The assumed ‘Zoro’ then proceeded to slay both Sham and Buchi in a single attack each. While the straw-hatted man looked on as if he was waiting for something.”</p><p>“If it was Roronoa that wouldn’t be surprising, the man has taken down bounties higher than the seven million the Meowban Brothers were worth.” The Communications Officer rumbled.</p><p>“Then we were all stunned when a butler appeared.” Brag informed. “Only, and I know this sounds impossible, the butler turned out to be Kuro ‘of a Thousand Plans’.”</p><p>“Now I know you’ve been drinking, Petty Officer! Kuro was executed three years ago!” The Officer roared.</p><p>“Sir, no sir! This man had the signature ‘Cat Claws’ and even performed Kuro’s infamous high-speed movement to attack the four people!” Brag countered making the Communications Officer slump in his chair.</p><p>“Who the hell was executed then?” The Officer muttered to himself.</p><p>“Sir, I’m afraid it gets weirder. The straw-hatted man stopped Kuro’s movement by grabbing the ‘Cat Claw’ blades with his bare hand. He then proceeded to punch Kuro. That first blow staggered the pirate and the second blow the straw-hatted man landed crushed Kuro’s face and killed him instantaneously. When the remaining pirates tried to flee in their ship the straw-hatted man annihilated the Belzan Black with what appeared to be a blast of lightning! He had to be a Devil Fruit User, sir!” Brag finished his initial report.</p><p>“How much do you know now? Why are we only hearing about this, hours after the fact?” The Communications Officer demanded.</p><p>“Sir, once all civilians left the area we moved in to confirm our initial observations. This is how we’ve been able to confirm that Jango, the Meowban Brothers, and even Kuro are who we believed them to be and that all four are dead. We’ve retrieved the corpses with bounties and threw the remaining dead into the sea as standard procedure dictates.” Brag finished reporting.</p><p>“Those descriptions are similar to a recent report involving Orange Town and Buggy ‘The Clown’. A group of three at the time, ‘Zoro’, an orange-haired woman and a man in a straw hat were said to have decimated the Buggy Pirates and freed Orange Town from occupation. But according to the residents the straw-hatted man claimed they were pirates themselves.” The Communications Officer rambled as he went through the stack of reports near the Transponder Snail.</p><p>“We’re returning to base with the identified corpses, sir. Is there anything else we need to do?” Brag asked.</p><p>“No, bring the bodies in for confirmation and disposal. We’ll send out an Investigation Unit to Syrup Village to acquire further information from the residents. If we are dealing with an emerging pirate crew that is capable of taking down the biggest, most infamous pirates in the East Blue we’re about to have a much worse problem. I’ll need your report written and on the Commander’s desk by O’ Eight Hundred tomorrow morning so that we can assemble a new compiled report between these two incidents.” The Officer ordered.</p><p>“Yes, sir! Over and out!” Brag replied as the Transponder Snail cut off.</p><p>“What the hell is going on? Where did these people come from? Especially a Devil Fruit User in East Blue?! Where will they head next? This group needs to be watched and, if possible, stopped before they become a true pirate crew.” The Communications Officer growled as he found the Orange Town Report and started going through it.</p><p>-Going Merry ~ The Next Morning-</p><p>“Luffy, don’t take this the wrong way…but…I don’t think art is your best talent.” Nami stifled her giggles as she looked at Luffy’s attempt to paint what would be their Jolly Roger. The whole thing was rather misshapen but the general idea was there. It was a traditional ‘Skull and Crossbones’ with Luffy’s signature straw hat.</p><p>“Hmm, you think so?” Luffy asked as he tilted his head while looking over his work.</p><p>“It sucks.” Usopp and Zoro confirmed in unison.</p><p>“Well I still want this design.” Luffy pouted making Nami laugh and lean against him. The closeness brought a smile to Luffy’s face and his arm was quickly around her waist.</p><p>Usopp gave Zoro a questioning look practically asking ‘Are they…?’</p><p>Zoro looked at his Captain and their Navigator before turning back to Usopp and giving a shrug. It was a classic ‘Probably, but who cares?’ being conveyed by the look and motion.</p><p>“Just leave the drawing to a pro!” Usopp boasted as he took up the brush with a blank black flag. Not too much later and Usopp had finished.</p><p>“It looks awesome!” Luffy cheered seeing his vision of their Jolly Roger come to life. Usopp did apparently have the artistic talent that Luffy lacked as he’d made Luffy’s misshapen design into a proper Jolly Roger.</p><p>“Never doubt the skills of Usopp, the Master Artist!” Usopp declared with a smug smile.</p><p>“Now paint it on the main sail too!” Luffy declared making Usopp’s eyes bug out.</p><p>“What!” Usopp cried in dismay.</p><p>“Also on the replacement we have for the main sail down in the holds too!” Nami chirped making Usopp crash into the deck with streams of crocodile tears running down his face. Zoro chuckled as he took the finished Jolly Roger and started climbing up to the crow’s nest to hang their new flag high.</p><p>“With this the Straw Hat Pirates are officially formed!” Luffy exclaimed to the world with a huge smile as he laughed.</p><p>When Usopp finally finished painting both the main sail and the replacement in the holds it was near lunch time. The crew of four sat down for a meal and Luffy explained their next course of action.</p><p>“We need a cook.” Luffy stated with a nod. He received looks of agreement from everyone at the table.</p><p>“I know the basics, but that won’t be enough if we plan to sail the Grand Line.” Nami mentioned. “We need a true professional or we could die of malnutrition, food poisoning, or any other number of things related to food.”</p><p>“True, a cook is indispensable for long voyages.” Usopp nodded stroking his chin with his right hand.</p><p>“Where do we find a professional cook that can handle the life of a pirate?” Zoro questioned, only to get blank looks from his crewmates.</p><p>“That’s going to be the problem.” Nami sighed.</p><p>“We’ll figure something out.” Luffy shrugged before smiling. “But now it’s time for training!” Nami pouted but still stood up to follow Luffy outside. Zoro smirked at finally being able to get in some real training. Usopp followed along blissfully unaware of what he was about to go through.</p><p>“Well before we begin we need to get Usopp to the starting point!” Luffy grinned as he placed his hand on Usopp’s shoulder.</p><p>“What starting point?” Usopp questioned not liking the grin on Luffy’s face.</p><p>“Don’t pass out, no matter what, ok?” Luffy asked and Usopp’s eyes bugged out in fear before Luffy’s demeanor changed and an indescribable wave of force suddenly slammed into the gunman’s senses.</p><p>“Ahh!” Usopp managed to shriek before being rendered mute by the pressure in his head suddenly becoming all he could perceive. He was terrified, he was shaking, sweating, his head was throbbing. He could hear his own heartbeat and feel his blood pounding in his ears. He saw black spots forming in his vision and then he felt the brief weightlessness of falling. His back and his head smacking into the deck barely kept him conscious and in a moment the force vanished.</p><p>“It looks like he couldn’t keep it together.” Zoro commented though Usopp barely heard the swordsman. His hearing was muffled as if he had ear plugs in.</p><p>“It’s not exactly a pleasant experience.” Nami replied through the cotton-stuffed ears Usopp felt like he had.</p><p>“I-I…I’m…s-still…aw-awake.” Usopp forced out slowly even though he felt somewhat nauseous from the action.</p><p>“That’s my nakama!” Luffy cheered with a loud laugh while Zoro and Nami gave approving nods and smirks in Zoro’s case.</p><p>“W-what…the hell…was t-that?” Usopp demanded as he slowly sat up and held his head.</p><p>“That was Conqueror’s Haki.” Luffy answered but that only brought up more questions for Usopp.</p><p>“What’s that?” Usopp asked and Luffy smiled.</p><p>“Haki is a power that awakens in those that have been pushed past their mental and physical limits. It’s absolutely mandatory for surviving the second half of the Grand Line so I’m making sure that everyone on my crew awakens it and learns how to use it.” Luffy responded.</p><p>“I have several questions.” Usopp deadpanned and Luffy chuckled before the two of them spent several minutes going over the ins and outs of Haki. By the end of their discussion Usopp was more than willing to learn how to utilize Haki. He would later regret boasting that he could endure any training that it would require. Now that the crew had space to train Luffy gave them all a glimpse of what Garp and Kuzan had put Luffy, Ace, and Sabo through when they were younger.</p><p>-Somewhere on the Grand Line-</p><p>“Brrr.” Ace shivered as he felt a cold chill go up his spine. Which was especially odd, as he didn’t get cold since he ate the Mera Mera no Mi all those years ago.</p><p>“You alright, Ace?” A crewmate asked noticing the shudder.</p><p>“Yeah, just suddenly remembered some of the things I went through when I was a kid is all.” Ace replied as he shook his head to dispel the memories.</p><p>-Baltigo-</p><p>“Ugh…” Sabo shuddered suddenly gaining the attention of his partner, Koala.</p><p>“Something wrong?” Koala asked her partner only for him to wave his hand placating.</p><p>“Just a bad memory, nothing to worry about.” Sabo assured his partner.</p><p>“I’ll help.” Koala smiled softly as she sat on the bed in Sabo’s quarters and patted her lap. “Lay down.”</p><p>“What about…” Sabo started to say only to be met with Koala’s pouting face. “Alright, alright…but just for a bit we still have work to do.” He relented as he lay down and placed his head on Koala’s lap. Her smile brought a grin to Sabo’s face as she started running her fingers through his blonde hair.</p><p>-Back on the Going Merry-</p><p>“Just a few more laps!” Luffy encouraged his crew as all four of them ran the length of the ship.</p><p>“He says that like it’s nothing.” Usopp panted out as he forced his legs to move and carry him up the stairs to the upper deck of the ship.</p><p>“Don’t complain; this is necessary to become strong.” Nami chastised the gunman from her place a few paces ahead of him. Even though she was drenched in sweat from the exertion; Nami would force herself through this training. She refused to be weak anymore. Luffy was doing everything he could to make them stronger and prepare them for the Grand Line. She’d be damned if she threw his efforts back in his face by being lazy.</p><p>“We haven’t even gotten to weights, sparring or trying to use Armament yet. Why are you complaining over the warm up?” Zoro questioned from ahead of both of them, a sheen of sweat on his forehead the only evidence the ‘warm up’ was getting to him even a little.</p><p>“Don’t worry,” Luffy yelled back from his significant distance ahead of even Zoro. “We’ll start off light for today!”</p><p>“Why do I get the feeling his version of ‘light’ is going to be insane?” Usopp panted.</p><p>“Shut up, Usopp.” Nami huffed, though her own face was a bit blue since she was also certain it would be crazy. Zoro only grinned at the challenge and pushed himself harder to try and catch up to Luffy.</p><p>At the end of the day Nami and Usopp were proven correct.</p><p>-Three Days Later ~ Going Merry-</p><p>“I think…I’m starting…to get use…to the warm up.” Nami huffed and puffed as she took a break after morning training. Usopp was spread eagle on the deck panting like an overheated dog. Zoro was drinking from a flagon of water while slowly steadying his breathing.</p><p>“You’re doing great, Nami!” Luffy smiled and Nami couldn’t help but grin back. “We’ll have free time once you’re all cooled down. I’m going to sit on my special seat and keep watch.” With that Luffy ran over to the figurehead and leapt on top of it to sit on the sheepshead, a large grin on his face.</p><p>“I’m going to get a shower.” Nami declared as she stood up on sore legs and made her way to the bathroom.</p><p>“I’m taking a nap.” Zoro yawned as he reclined back against the mast and dozed off.</p><p>“I should work on some more trick ammo. Also need to make more rounds for my pistols and rifle.” Usopp nodded once he could breathe properly. The gunman shakily made his way to one of the small storage rooms he’d commandeered as his workshop. The Going Merry had two such rooms, one on the port-side near the bow just off the cannon deck. The other was on the starboard-side near the stern of the ship. Usopp had taken the one off the cannon deck to be nearer to supplies for his tinkering while Nami had taken over the other one as a drying area for her clothes once they’d been put through the wash tub. Usopp still remembered ‘that’ particular conversation.</p><p>-The Previous Day-</p><p>“What do you mean, ‘Why do you need a private drying room?’, isn’t it obvious?” Nami glared with her arms crossed.</p><p>“Can’t we just hang our clothes on the line and let them dry in the sun?” Luffy asked and Usopp hung his head at the denseness of that statement.</p><p>“You men can do as you like with that.” Nami waved her hand. “But I don’t want my underthings waving in the wind for anyone sailing nearby to gawk at.”</p><p>“Oh, right.” Luffy nodded as he smacked his fist down on his opposite palm. Nami sighed at the lack of foresight from her Captain/soon-to-be Lover.</p><p>“I wish we had a way to dry clothes a bit faster but that’ll require some…tinkering.” Nami trailed off as her eyes turned to Usopp. “Say…Usopp, you said you’re a bit of a tinkerer didn’t you?”</p><p>“Yeah…” Usopp replied as he leaned back from the intense gaze of the orangette.</p><p>“We should have a talk soon.” Nami grinned and Usopp suddenly felt like he’d be getting several requests from their Navigator shortly.</p><p>“Sure thing…” Usopp sighed with crocodile tears running down his face.</p><p>-Flashback End-</p><p>“So much better!” Nami sighed happily as she stepped out into the sun and breeze. With a fresh change of clothes, after a nice warm shower, she felt like a new woman; aside from the soreness in her body from Luffy’s ‘training’. “Now where did Usopp get to? I have an idea!”</p><p>“Careful, slowly…” Usopp whispered as he gently hollowed out a metal ball to turn it into one of his slingshot ‘stars’. If he was to rough the metal would get too thin and it would break before he could fire it at an enemy. He had to leave just the right amount of thickness to the ball to hold his concoctions while still being able to break on impact.</p><p>“Hey Usopp!” Nami yelled as she slammed open his workshop door.</p><p>“Ahh!” Usopp yelled in shock and crushed the small ball that he’d just finished hollowing out. “Aw, damn it.” Usopp grumbled as he looked at the ruined ball before turning to face the orangette. “What, Nami?”</p><p>“I had an idea for a little upgrade to my staff.” Nami smiled like she hadn’t just startled the hell out of Usopp and made him mess up what he was doing.</p><p>“Like what?” Usopp queried since he couldn’t stop his tinkerer side from becoming curious.</p><p>“Well, we have unlimited electricity thanks to Luffy. I think I could make use of that with a few adjustments to my staff. A bit of metal on the ends to be conductive, some wiring to carry the current and then I have a shock staff!” The Navigator grinned with malevolence that made Usopp sweat drop.</p><p>“We’d need some kind of small battery set up to hold the charge though.” Usopp stated as he rubbed his chin in thought. “We’d need to go to a larger island with a big city or town for that. Electricity has only been widely available for a bit over a decade. There are still tons of islands that barely have any electric appliances or devices. For a battery set up to make this ‘shock staff’ it would have to be something that could fit inside the sections of your staff. You won’t find things like that on just any old island.” Usopp pondered aloud with a thoughtful look on his face.</p><p>“I’m sure you’ll be able to come up with something.” Nami encouraged, though the look on her face said ‘Figure it out, or else!’ in contrast to her words.</p><p>“Hey Nami, will you make me something to eat?” Luffy asked from the door way with a wide smile.</p><p>“Luffy, you glutton, we’re going to have lunch in a while, just be patient!” Nami reprimanded her Captain.</p><p>“Aww, come on, just a snack before lunch? Please?” Luffy pouted and Nami still thought it was adorable on his face.</p><p>“Fine, but only something small.” Nami huffed as she walked out of Usopp’s small workshop and closed the door behind her.</p><p>“Shishishi; thanks Nami.” Luffy smiled as he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. Nami leaned back into the hug with a grin of her own.</p><p>“Are you sure you aren’t hungry for something else?” Nami teased as she pulled his head down to her shoulder and turned her head to meet his lips. The two enjoyed their impromptu lip lock for a few moments before Nami pulled back. “Alright, let’s feed that bottomless pit you call a stomach.” She giggled before hooking her left index finger into the top of his shirt and pulling him along behind her.</p><p>-Lunch Time-</p><p>The crew had just finished eating, courtesy of Nami’s cooking, when Luffy perked up suddenly and the crew all looked at him confused.</p><p>“We’re about to have a visitor.” Luffy stated. “His ‘voice’ is desperate though, I wonder why?”</p><p>“Well should we talk to the guy or what?” Usopp asked only for a yell to come from outside.</p><p>“Hey you pirates! If you don’t want to be captured and turned in you better hand over any medicine you’ve got!” A man’s voice yelled and Luffy was quickly at the door of the kitchen/lounge/helm cabin before anyone else could even stand up. Opening the door revealed a man in a blue jacket, white pants, with sunglasses over his eyes and a sword in his hand.</p><p>“Who’re you?” Luffy asked as he stepped up to the railing on the upper deck of his ship.</p><p>“I’m Johnny the Bounty Hunter.” Johnny declared as he pointed his sword at Luffy. “Yes, ‘that’ Johnny you small time pirate! If you don’t want me to capture you and turn you over to the Marines you’ll give me any medicine you have!”</p><p>“Why?” Luffy asked as Nami and Usopp poked their heads out of the doorway. The two completely blocked Zoro from getting out of the cabin to see what was going on.</p><p>“You think this is a joke?!” Johnny roared as he hefted his sword. “I’ll slice this ship to pieces if you don’t hand over whatever medicine you got!” Just as Johnny was about to swing his sword into the nearby railing on the edge of the deck, he suddenly found his sword knocked from his hand. That turned out to be the least of his problems though. Luffy’s left hand was currently around Johnny’s neck and crushing his windpipe.</p><p>“I don’t take kindly to people that threaten my nakama or my ship.” Luffy coldly stated as Johnny’s face began to turn red from the lack of air. The bounty hunter tried to throw a punch at Luffy; the punch didn’t even make the pirate flinch. It did however, make Luffy increase the strength of his grip and Johnny was forced to his knees as he used both hands to try and pry the pirate’s hand from his throat. Soon enough Johnny’s face turned purple from the prolonged lack of air and his hands fell limply from Luffy’s wrist. He was roughly thrown to the deck as Luffy let go of his throat and the black-haired man sucked in as much air as he could through his damaged windpipe.</p><p>“Johnny? Is that you?” Zoro asked as he finally pushed past Nami and Usopp to see what was going on.</p><p>“B-bro?” Johnny coughed out as he looked up to see his former bounty hunting associate.</p><p>“Where’s Yosaku? Aren’t you two still partners?” Zoro asked as Johnny hacked and coughed as he tried to refill his lungs.</p><p>“It’s terrible, bro!” Johnny cried as he turned to Zoro. “Yosaku suddenly started feeling ill a few days ago. Then some of his old wounds re-opened and a few teeth fell out. I found a small patch of rock while we were sailing and let him rest there. Then I saw this pirate ship and thought I could force them to give me some medicine for Yosaku. What are you doing here, bro?”</p><p>“Hmm, do you mean that patch of rock?” Usopp asked as he pointed to a rocky outcropping sticking out of the sea a bit away from the Going Merry’s course.</p><p>“Go get Yosaku; I’m sure Luffy won’t mind bringing him on board if he’s as bad as you say.” Zoro ordered Johnny after Luffy shrugged and gave the go ahead. Within twenty minutes Yosaku was laid out on some spare bedding in the shade on deck. Nami looked the man over before asking Johnny a question.</p><p>“What do you guys normally eat while sailing?” Nami asked and Johnny looked at her confused for a moment.</p><p>“You know; regular stuff that lasts for a while. Smoked and salted meat, fish that we can catch sometimes, stuff like that.” Johnny replied and Nami cocked an eyebrow.</p><p>“When was the last time you two ate fruits or vegetables?” Nami questioned and Johnny stopped to think for a moment.</p><p>“It’s been a while; we’ve been having a hard time tracking down worthwhile bounties these last couple months. So we’ve only been eating two meals a day at best. Then we got caught up in the tail end of a storm and the squall pushed us way off our course so our food ran out the other day. Thankfully we still had our water and rum though, couldn’t imagine either of us even making it this far without the booze.” Johnny remarked only for Nami to smack him upside the head.</p><p>“You idiots! You have to eat right if you want to sail the sea! Your friend has scurvy! Drinking alcohol makes it worse!” Nami yelled at the hapless bounty hunter. “Luffy go fetch a couple bottles of lime juice from the kitchen both of these idiots need plenty of vitamin C for the next week or so.”</p><p>“Right.” Luffy nodded and quickly went to fetch the juice.</p><p>“How the hells are you two still alive?” Zoro sighed while shaking his head.</p><p>“Sorry, bro.” Johnny looked down in shame. Within a few minutes both Johnny and Yosaku were drinking from their own bottles of lime juice. Yosaku had awoken and tried to sit up only for Zoro to force him to stay down. The ill bounty hunter would need at least a week of extra vitamin C before he’d be well enough to even move about regularly.</p><p>“This is why we need a professional cook.” Nami stated after the two bounty hunters were given temporary lodging in the men’s quarters.</p><p>“Agreed, but we still have no idea where to find a professional cook that can live like a pirate.” Usopp replied.</p><p>“You need a cook that can fight?” Johnny asked as he walked into the cabin, his bottle of lime juice in hand. “I know a place full of them!”</p><p>“Where’s that?” Luffy asked his curiosity peaked.</p><p>“The sea-faring restaurant, Baratie!” Johnny exclaimed. “It’s full of tough cooks that fight off even pirates! They serve anybody as long as you can pay for your meal. Pirate, Bounty Hunter, Marine, Merchant, Civilian, doesn’t matter to those cooks!”</p><p>“Is the food good?” Luffy asked and Johnny smiled widely.</p><p>“The best food I’ve ever eaten in my whole life!” Johnny proclaimed and Luffy’s eyes sparkled!</p><p>“Do you know where it is?” Nami questioned since the bounty hunters had been blown off course they might not know which way to go.</p><p>“Yeah, I was able to confirm our general area last night because the sky was clear and I could finally see all the stars. Feel free to confirm my positioning but if we sail south-west from here we’ll spot it in about five or six days.” Johnny nodded. “It’s fairly close to the entrance to the Grand Line so a lot of strong pirates pass through those waters. Apparently a ‘hawk-eyed’ man has been seen at the restaurant before too.” Johnny mentioned looking directly at Zoro.</p><p>“You don’t say.” Zoro grinned his eyes full of determination.</p><p>“Alright! Nami set a course for this Baratie place! Let’s get ourselves some good food!” Luffy cheered while Nami playfully rolled her eyes.</p><p>“And a professional cook that can fight, remember?” Nami reminded and Luffy laughed.</p><p>“Shishishi, that too!” Luffy smiled as the crew adjusted their course. Next stop, the sea-going restaurant Baratie!</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Arlong is in trouble~! The Marines have started compiling the recent East Blue incidents involving the Straw Hats! What will become of their investigations? Will Nami get the ‘shock staff’ she wants? Will she make more requests from Usopp? Probably… Luffy and Nami have gotten rather close now. What is next for them? How will a certain blonde chef react? Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Sea-Faring Restaurant, Sous Chef Sanji</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! We’re going to Baratie! A certain swirly-browed Chef is in for an experience! Plus a new ass that needs kicking!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 9 – Sea-Faring Restaurant, Sous Chef Sanji</strong>
</p><p>Luffy was a monster.</p><p>That was the consensus that all of the Straw Hats, plus Johnny and Yosaku, had come to. Every day he increased the crew’s training a bit more. More laps around the ship, more repetitions with the weights, higher reps with their physical exercises, and longer sparring sessions. None of the crew was spared from this training. Usopp and Nami almost always felt like hell afterwards and even Zoro was left sore and panting at the end.</p><p>Though none of them could speak out against their Captain’s methods, not with the results already showing themselves. Nami used to struggle to get through the daily training about two weeks ago just before they got the Going Merry. Now she consistently finished and noticed that her body, while still soft and feminine, had quite a bit more strength behind it. She could keep up intense activity for far longer than she ever could before. Not to mention she’d discovered quite the affinity for Observation Haki. She could now successfully keep her Observation going throughout a fight, or at least a spar with her crewmates, and her ability to predict an opponent’s moves had started to develop.</p><p>Even Usopp, with his spouting off of random fake diseases, had started to tone up his body. The gunman was still wiped out by the training more often than not, but everyone had noticed that he was recovering faster from it each day. Usopp had also found an affinity towards Observation Haki. His perception was growing steadily and he seemed to know when anyone on the ship was directing their gaze at him now days. Plus he’d mentioned over dinner a couple nights ago that his marksmanship had improved ever since he’d started learning Observation. In Usopp’s own words, ‘It’s like the bulls-eye is showing me how to hit it!’ Luffy only smiled and laughed at his Gunner’s progress.</p><p>Zoro had taken to the physical training the best. He was constantly pushing himself to the limit even before he met Luffy. This was just more of the same for the swordsman. Though unlike Nami and Usopp, Zoro had most definitely taken to Armament Haki the most, the green-haired man clearly had an affinity for it. He was also the only member of the crew that could last in a spar against Luffy for more than a few minutes. Though to be fair Luffy could spar with all three of his crewmates three-on-one and still come out the victor. Nami, Zoro, and Usopp would all be laid out on the deck panting, sore, and bruised while Luffy would be his usual smiling, happy self. The straw-hatted Captain would barely be winded and none of them could say for certain that they’d ever made him actually break a sweat.</p><p>Currently it was near the end of daily training, Luffy and Zoro were having their routine sparring as Nami, Johnny and Yosaku watched on.</p><p>Zoro huffed and puffed around the handle of Wado Ichimonji. Luffy stood across from him fists raised and a smile on his face. As it turned out, being trained by Garp ‘The Fist’ and a Marine Admiral, made Luffy an insanely strong fighter. Even against all three of Zoro’s swords Luffy could fight bare-handed without fear of being injured. His Armament Haki was something Zoro strived to achieve already.</p><p>"Gah!" Zoro grunted as Luffy's fists knocked the two swords he held aside. A dull thud rang across the deck as Luffy's knee struck his stomach and almost lifted him off his feet. With a growl he brought both swords back around in a dual swipe, aiming for his Captain's neck.</p><p>Luffy maintained his massive grin as he caught the blades, one in each hand. He lifted his right leg and kicked towards Zoro’s stomach. The swordsman lifted his own leg to block the kick and was sent skidding across the deck from the force. Zoro grunted from the impact before swinging the sword in his right hand so fast it was barely visible. From the swing a wave of displaced air made an arc towards Luffy. The straw-hatted man grinned as he tilted his body to the side as the arc passed him, leaving him unharmed. "Shishishi, you're getting better at those, Zoro."</p><p>"Thanks Captain." Zoro said clearly, despite the sword handle in his mouth. The swordsman panted from the intensity of their spar. He was covered in sweat and if he were a weaker man, he would’ve no doubt collapsed a while ago. He had a tired, but happy grin on his face regardless of his bruises and soreness. Ever since the crew had started actually sparring, Zoro could feel himself growing stronger by the day. He’d even managed to perform a ‘Flying Cut’ for the first time in his life thanks to the training Luffy was putting them through. The fact that it was his Observation Haki that led him to understand the technique brought back memories of his sensei on his home island. ‘Listening to the sword…you were right all along, sensei.’ Zoro mused as he removed Wado from his mouth and looked over his most prized sword. He’d been practicing his swings four days ago while trying to keep his Observation up at the same time. Suddenly he felt like he wasn’t swinging his sword correctly. This had puzzled him for a bit as he was doing the swings he’d been taught as a child. Deciding to follow this feeling Zoro had readjusted his grip on Wado Ichimonji and swung the sword at a greater speed while focusing on an imaginary target. To his surprise an arc of displaced air had left his blade and travelled a short distance before dispersing. He’d been practicing the ‘Flying Cut’ every day since then and had used it in his spars against Luffy for the last two days.</p><p>Johnny and Yosaku, who’d both been watching the spar with lime juice bottles in hand, had wide eyes and their mouths hanging open in shock. "Big bro Zoro is so strong…and he can't even land a good hit on Bro Luffy." Johnny muttered with Yosaku nodding along.</p><p>"Nice job you guys! Shishishi!" Luffy called a stop to the day's practice with a laugh. Zoro sighed as he sheathed Wado and went to get some water from the kitchen. Usopp was already spread eagle on the deck from his own, short, spar with Luffy; the long-nose teen’s tongue hanging out of his mouth as he panted. Nami was leaning against the railing of the ship steadying her breathing. She was also covered in some light bruises from her earlier spar with Luffy. Though she was sure they’d fade in a while. Luffy seemed to have an instinct about just how much each of his crewmates could take. Nami thanked whatever higher power saw fit to make that happen, she’d hate to take a full on punch from Luffy, she probably wouldn’t survive it!</p><p>"He sparred with all of them and he's barely breathing hard." Yosaku was in awe and also feeling pretty intimidated. Johnny was thanking his lucky stars that this crew was the one Zoro was a part of. If not for that fact he worried that Luffy may have just outright killed him for his attack.</p><p>"Shishishi." Luffy looked rather amused at the state of his crew, though he was also proud of them. "Hey, you two!" Both bounty hunters stood up quickly under Luffy’s gaze. "How close are we to this restaurant?" He asked with a slight tilt of his head.</p><p>“About six hours or so, little less, little more!" Johnny replied as he moved his hands up and down like a set of scales.</p><p>"Great! That's enough time for me to have a nice, long soak in the bath." Nami grinned happily as she pushed herself off the railing eager to hop into a hot, relaxing bath. "Luffy, I’m borrowing the Master Bath.” She informed her Captain as she made her way to her room to grab a change of clothes.</p><p>“Ok, Nami.” Luffy smiled as he watched Zoro lay down for a nap against the mast. Usopp was slowly getting to his feet and looked like he could use a shower himself with all the sweat running down his face.</p><p>“Make sure you shower too after I'm done!" Nami called out as she came out of the Women’s Quarters with her change of clothes.</p><p>"Why?" Luffy asked as he looked himself over. He hadn’t even broken a sweat during training.</p><p>"Because we’re going to a restaurant, you should make yourself presentable!" Nami yelled back, before she entered the Captain’s Quarters. Luffy blinked, before smacking his fist down onto his palm.</p><p>“That makes sense!” Luffy grinned with a laugh. He’d give Nami an hour to enjoy the tub before he headed into his quarters and took his own shower.</p><p>“Ha~ this is great.” Nami sighed happily as she soaked in the large tub in the Master Bath. Honestly such a nice bathroom was wasted on Luffy; he only showered and left the tub mostly unused. “Such a waste…” She grinned as she relaxed. Knowing Luffy he’d give her at least an hour for herself to enjoy the bath. Looking towards the small clock on the wall next to the door Nami pouted at seeing an hour had almost passed already. The orangette stood up and left the tub, quickly grabbing a towel she wrapped it around her body before taking another and beginning to dry her hair. Once her hair was dry enough she picked up the brush she kept in the Master Bath and began running it through her hair. Luffy didn’t mind her keeping some extra sundries in his bathroom, so Nami had pretty much everything she needed already here whenever she used the Master Bath.</p><p>“He’s just too kind, such a goofy pirate.” Nami giggled to herself as she finished with her hair. Hearing the door of the Captain’s Quarters open and close Nami glanced at the clock again only to find it was almost ten minutes passed the hour. She’d left her change of clothes on the desk near the Master Bath so they wouldn’t get damp from the steam in the bathroom. ‘Wait, what am I even worrying about? Luffy’s my man, sort of, it’s not like he hasn’t seen me almost naked before.’ Nami shook her head with a grin on her face. In the almost two weeks since Nami had revealed her past to Luffy and made her request, she’d slept in Luffy’s bed four times, including the first time. Just remembering Luffy’s promise of killing Arlong put a dark smirk on her face. ‘Maybe I should keep the heat up in our relationship.’ Nami grinned as she undid the towel around her body and re-wrapped it around her waist, leaving her large breasts free and showing off her toned stomach. Looking herself over in the mirror Nami winked at her reflection before heading to the bathroom door. A quick check with her Observation, just to make sure it was Luffy in the Captain’s Quarters, and Nami opened the door upon feeling the powerful presence of her Captain/Lover.</p><p>“Finished Nami…?” Luffy trailed off as he gazed upon his Navigator coming out of the bathroom. The beautiful orangette only had a towel around her waist leaving everything else bare and open for his view. Needless to say Luffy’s eyes ran up and down her form, stopping many times on her bare breasts as they bounced slightly from her steps.</p><p>“Yep, the bathroom is free, Luffy.” Nami grinned at him like she wasn’t giving him an amazing view. “I’ll just get dressed and head out.” She smiled as she made her way over to her clothes on the desk. Just as Nami reached the desk she heard Luffy’s foot steps behind her and smiled when his arms wrapped around her waist from behind pulling her gently back into his chest.</p><p>“Nami…” Luffy breathed hotly against her neck making the orangette shiver pleasantly.</p><p>“Luffy~.” Nami sighed happily as she leaned her head to the side so Luffy had more access to her neck. Feeling him place a kiss on the side of her neck made Nami smile, her Captain’s hands slowly moving from her waist to caress her sides brought a moan from her.</p><p>“Can I?” Luffy asked softly his hands just under her breasts and Nami couldn’t stop the warmth that practically exploded from her heart. Ever since the first night she’d let him see her body for the first time, Luffy had never once been pushy or demanding with her. Nami got to control the speed at which their relationship progressed and she very much enjoyed the consideration Luffy showed her.</p><p>“Go ahead~.” Nami moaned breathily into his ear, her head now resting back on his shoulder. “Mmm~.” She moaned as his warm hands gently ran over her mounds before cupping them. The gentle caresses made her feel little shocks of pleasure as Luffy slowly explored her breasts. When he ran his fingers over her nipples she couldn’t stifle her moans and Luffy took interest in her reaction.</p><p>“Does that feel good?” Luffy questioned as his fingers circled around her areola, teasing her sensitive nipples without touching them. The fact that he was genuinely curious wasn’t lost on Nami.</p><p>“Yes~…Luffy, more~.” Nami breathed out huskily as Luffy’s fingers went back to caressing her nipples. The orangette gently reached up and placed her hand against Luffy’s chin. Turning his head to face her she connected their lips and the two enjoyed another kiss. Nami opened her mouth to run her tongue against Luffy’s lip. After a moment the straw-hatted man opened his mouth and the two began a deep French kiss. A few minutes later, with only a few quick breaks for air, and Nami captured Luffy’s hands. Gently pulling them away from her breasts, even though she was very much enjoying them, she turned to face Luffy. “You still need a shower Mister, go take one and change into clean clothes.”</p><p>“Aww…” Luffy pouted before Nami giggled and kissed him again.</p><p>“We’ll have time tonight. So make sure you get clean.” Nami grinned sexily, her eyes half-lidded.</p><p>“Ok!” Luffy smiled back and headed into the Master Bath. Once the door closed Nami dropped the towel from around her waist and pulled on a nice, lacy, pair of panties. Luffy would probably like seeing them on her tonight.</p><p>“All his power and strength yet he still listens to me; that kind of power could go to a girl’s head.” Nami giggled as she put on her matching lacy bra. ‘We’ll have to ‘celebrate’ once he kills that bastard. I’m really looking forward to it!’ The orangette smiled while hugging herself at the naughty images running through her head.</p><p>-A Few Hours Later-</p><p>"Big bro Zoro! Bro Luffy! Bro Usopp! Bro Nami!” The two bounty hunters called out. "We're here!" Both met the deck face-first courtesy of Nami’s fists.</p><p>"Stop calling me 'bro' damn it!" Nami growled at the downed bounty hunters, both of whom now sported large smoking lumps on their heads. Honestly six days with these idiots and they still wouldn’t stop with the ‘bro’ stuff. Still, the two had alerted everyone and the Straw Hat crew stood on deck for their first looks at the Sea-Faring Restaurant, Baratie. It was an, odd, looking boat to say the least. It was bigger than the Going Merry, with three visible decks and four separate levels. It had normal enough masts and was oval-shaped when viewed from above, but what made the restaurant ship unique was the gaping fish head figurehead along with a matching tail at the opposite end of the ship.</p><p>"That's so crazy!" Usopp exclaimed as he stared at the ship.</p><p>"Wow!" Nami cheered with a grin.</p><p>"Giant Fish!" Luffy whooped pointing at the Baratie. Zoro was the only one looking even slightly calm, simply raising an eyebrow at the design of the other ship. Luffy tensed for a moment as several voices entered his passive Observation range. Most of them started out curious, but then hostility began replacing curiosity voice by voice. Glancing over Luffy spotted the Marine ship sailing closer towards them; obviously the vessel was heading for Baratie too. A couple of seconds later everyone else took notice of the Marine Ship coming up beside them.</p><p>"Oi, oi, we ain't Pirates over here." Yosaku stated as he and Johnny started to sweat. The two bounty hunters decided to try to hide behind the door that led to the crew quarters and the holds. A Marine dressed in formal wear stepped out on deck as the two ships sailed next to each other. He had a pale, pinstripe suit on, bolts attached to his knuckles, pink hair running past his ears, and a scar on his cheek.</p><p>"Hmm…I've never seen that flag before…" The suited Marine muttered calmly, "I'm Marine Lieutenant ‘Iron Fist’ Fullbody. Who is your Captain?"</p><p>"That would be me. I'm Luffy. We just raised our flag yesterday." Luffy answered without a care in the world.</p><p>"And I'm Usopp!" Usopp declared his arms crossed. Nami's fist deposited him onto the deck with a steaming lump protruding from his head.</p><p>Fullbody's eyebrow rose as he caught sight of Johnny and Yosaku hiding behind the door. "Wait, I've seen you two before. Yeah, you've skulked around some of the bounty offices in the past." He wasn't showing much emotion, but the tone of his voice was incredibly condescending, "So you two small-timers finally got yourselves caught, huh?"</p><p>"Small-timers?" Yosaku repeated with a grimace.</p><p>"Hey Yosaku, I think this bro is sticking it to us." Johnny stated, his mouth hidden behind his fist.</p><p>"We can't let some bastard go around calling us 'small time' now can we?" Yosaku asked as he took a drag from his cigarette. "It's not going to earn us a single Beri, but I think we ought to teach this punk how to keep his mouth shut."</p><p>"You cocky little shit!" They roared as they both leapt from the Going Merry with their blades drawn. Several swift punches from Fullbody later and the two idiots were tossed back onto the ship. Johnny's face was bruised and full of swollen lumps, and his nose was also bleeding. Yosaku's nose was bleeding as well, and it looked like he might have lost a tooth. "Al-almost…had him…" The two bounty hunters groaned.</p><p>"Man, you guys kinda suck." Luffy commented, looking down at the beaten pair. It was becoming an even bigger mystery of how Zoro had put up with these two long enough to learn their names.</p><p>"N-no…he's just…not too shabby either." The duo groaned. "It w-was a close one."</p><p>“It really wasn’t.” Nami deadpanned looking at the idiots.</p><p>"Darling, stop beating on these nobodies. You promised me a good dinner." A woman stepped out of the Marine ship, wearing a fancy red dress with her blonde hair styled.</p><p>"Ah yes." Fullbody finally showed some emotion, allowing the pretty blonde to take his arm. He called back to the Straw Hats, "Consider yourselves lucky, pirates! I'm on vacation today, so I'm just here for some good food and my lovely lady. Next time we meet, your lives are forfeit."</p><p>“Well isn’t he pleasant.” Nami remarked, unimpressed by the Marine Lieutenant.</p><p>"We're in trouble!" Usopp yelled in terror a moment later. Fullbody had already taken a dinghy over to the Baratie, but he had apparently ordered his men to sink them once he and his date were inside the restaurant. Usopp was sweating as he pointed at the ship, "They’re firing at us!"</p><p>With a loud boom the Marine cannon fired sending a cannonball speeding towards the Going Merry. Luffy lazily snatched the large iron ball out of the air; with no more difficulty than if someone had tossed a toy ball at him. Usopp, Johnny, and Yosaku's eyes all bugged out while their jaws dropped to the deck. "How the hell!?" All three exclaimed in shock while Nami and Zoro watched on having already seen Luffy catch a cannonball before.</p><p>"You call this a cannonball?" Luffy grinned as he bounced the ball up and down in his hand, Nami and Zoro smirked as the Marines started panicking. "You can have this back!" He exclaimed as he threw the cannonball back at the Marine ship. In the split second that Usopp and the two hunters blinked, the returned cannonball had torn a huge hole through the Marine ship’s cabin decks. The ship rocked from the blow and dozens of the Marines lost their footing, falling to the deck of their ship. "Shoot at us again and the next one goes through the hull, under the water!" Luffy warned, before he and the rest of the Straw Hats headed to the Going Merry’s dinghy. The terrified Marines could only heed the warning or be stranded here as their ship sank. It wasn’t a hard call to make.</p><p>-Inside the Baratie-</p><p>The Straw Hats entered the floating restaurant to the smell of great food. All four members quickly found a table and sat down. Luffy glanced over and noticed Fullbody and his date sitting across the dining area from them. Hopefully they wouldn’t be bothered by the Marine while they ate. His Observation picked up on a strong voice that suddenly went ‘weird’ and he turned to see a blonde man in a black suit staring at their table.</p><p>The moment Sanji, Sous Chef of Baratie, laid his eyes on Nami they immediately turned into hearts, and practically leaped out of his head. He appeared to wiggle, like a noodle, over to their table rapidly.</p><p>"Oh blessed are the oceans for this day!" Sanji exclaimed as he got on bended knee and bowed to the orangette woman; who suddenly had a wicked, greedy smirk on her face as she smelled an easy mark. "Oh Blessed Goddess, thank you for gracing our restaurant with your beauty this day!”</p><p>"Oh, thank you so much, Sous Chef!" Nami clapped her hands together with a wide, pleased smile. She’d been lucky enough to overhear the blonde man’s title as they were walking through the restaurant to their table. Sanji, if possible, looked even more love-struck by her words and the fact that she knew his proper title. She put on the act of a fangirl meeting her idol and did it fabulously. "I'm afraid the food here is a little too expensive for me though…" She trailed off leadingly, her hand gently resting on his cheek.</p><p>"Please, a beautiful goddess such as yourself has no need to pay for your meal. I would be more than delighted to serve you for free." Sanji smiled winningly.</p><p>"Ah, thank you so much!" Nami smiled as she gave him a hug. Luffy was eyeing them and trying not to laugh as Nami played the blonde man like a fiddle. Nami, seeing her plan had succeeded quickly placed her order. "Oh, Sous Chef, it all looks so good. I’d love to try all of it." She sent a wink at Luffy and he was barely able to hold back his laughter. Several minutes later, both Nami and Luffy were eating and found the food to be beyond delicious.</p><p>"Hey!" Usopp yelled incensed that the blonde hadn’t even bothered to take anyone but Nami’s order. "Serve the rest of us as well, cook! This is gender discrimination! I'll sue!"</p><p>"I already gave you your tea. Show some gratitude, you little punk." Sanji's happy expression disappeared as he turned to face Usopp.</p><p>"You looking to start something?" Usopp glared at the blonde, even as something inside told him the other man was stronger than him. "I won't go easy on you! Go get him, Zoro!"</p><p>"Fight your own battles." Zoro drawled while lazily sipping his tea. "Pretty good tea."</p><p>"Delicious!" Nami exclaimed; having tasted a few of the dishes Sanji had brought out. She shared it all with Luffy, of course, who ate entire platefuls as soon as Nami had taken what she wanted from them. She looked at the two arguing before breaking out her acting skills again. "Oh you two, please don't fight over me." She fake pleaded, even managing to pull off a convincing sad expression.</p><p>"Who's fighting over you?!" Usopp questioned her angrily.</p><p>"Anything for you, miss!" Sanji was back into love-mode, hearts for eyes and all.</p><p>"Pervert." Zoro muttered as he sipped his tea.</p><p>Once Sanji had actually taken Usopp and Zoro’s orders and returned with their food almost everything was forgiven. The Strawn Hats were all amazed by how delicious the food was. When asked who made it, Sanji informed them that he cooked everything himself. Luffy was gorging himself on all the different meats, after Nami had gotten her share, a fact that wasn’t lost on the orangette as she watched him shamelessly swipe food from both Usopp’s and Zoro’s plates. Sanji wanted to say something about the straw-hatted man eating the food Nami had ordered. But, he couldn't as Nami was specifically sharing everything with him.</p><p>"It's so good!" Luffy exclaimed happily. "This is the best food I've ever eaten!" The rest of the table echoed the praise, putting a proud smirk onto Sanji's face. He was still miffed over Luffy eating the food he had cooked specifically for Nami, but the honest praise of his cooking skills had earned him a small pass.</p><p>"Oh waiter!" Fullbody suddenly called from across the dining area.</p><p>"I believe I've already told you I'm not a waiter." Sanji growled as he stalked over to the table. He turned to Fullbody's date before speaking again. "My, how beautiful you are. Would you like to share a glass of fine wine over there? We have an excellent selection." The blonde woman blushed faintly and deferred with a giggling laugh.</p><p>"Hey, just what do you think this disgusting bug is doing in my soup, waiter?" Fullbody demanded while grinding his teeth at the shamelessness of the blonde waiter. Outwardly, Fullbody was angry, but stone faced. Inwardly, however, he was smirking smugly at his plan to get Sanji fired by putting the bug in his own soup.</p><p>"I hardly claim to be an expert on insects, but if I had to guess I would say the backstroke." Sanji replied as he took a drag from his cigarette. The entire restaurant burst out laughing, while Fullbody grew increasingly red.</p><p>"Don’t fuck with me!" Fullbody roared as he shot to his feet while his iron-studded fist broke both the dish and the table into pieces, sending them clattering to the floor. Most of the room gasped, while his date backed away with a shriek. "You don't seem to have any idea who you're messing with." He growled, clenching his iron fist in front of him.</p><p>"All you had to do was remove the bug you put in it, and the soup would have been edible." Sanji's eyes were shadowed by his hair.</p><p>"You're really fucking full of yourself for a damn cook, aren't you! I'm a paying customer!" Fullbody bellowed as a vein bulged on his forehead.</p><p>"I spent three days and nights on this soup." Sanji rumbled as he got on one knee and picked up the shattered pieces of plate. "Can money fill your stomach?" He demanded; violence in his voice.</p><p>"Stop the Sous Chef!" One of the other cooks called out, but it was too late.</p><p>Fullbody charged, and seconds later was absolutely covered in blood. Sanji's nice dress shoes had simply been a flash as he rapidly kicked Fullbody as his horrified date looked on. The Marine’s suit was completely ruined by the blood falling from his busted lip and broken nose. Before Fullbody could fall to the floor, Sanji caught him by his collar and lifted him with one hand.</p><p>"Going against a Chef of the Sea is tantamount to suicide." Sanji stated, though with the state he was in Fullbody probably didn’t hear him. "Don't you dare waste food, you damn imbecile."</p><p>Zoro sighed at the scene, before he slowly turned his head towards Luffy. He didn't even try to hide the even louder sigh he let out. Luffy practically had stars in his eyes as he stared at Sanji. Zoro shook his head in exasperation. "Of all the cooks in this damn restaurant, of course we’d end up taking the perverted one."</p><p>A new guy appeared. He was a strangely shaped man, his biceps were small, but his forearms were huge. He had very skinny legs but a huge torso and a head shaped like a pear. His lips and his chin were huge, surrounded by a short black beard, and his head was shaved bald, with a white rope tied around it. This was Patty, and he had been in the bathroom giving himself a pep talk, to try and help himself deal with directly serving customers. So, he had been practicing cheesy lines in front of a mirror, all the while saying, "Customers are Kings!" So now he walked into the dining area, saying, "The customers are Kings! The customers are… What! The customer is being…!" He had a comical look of shock on his face. It quickly morphed into an angry growl of rage. "What the hell are you doing to our customer, Sanji?!" He then took notice of who the customer was and his eyes bulged. "He’s also a Marine Lieutenant!"</p><p>"Oh, it's just you, shitty cook. Don't say my name so causally like that." Sanji looked over his shoulder, still holding Fullbody up by the neck,</p><p>"I ain't going to stand here and let a shitty cook call me a shitty cook." Smoke erupted from Patty's nose as he walked forward. "Customers are Kings, Sanji! So how do you explain his injuries, huh?"</p><p>"The only noble thing some of our customers do is pretend to like the slop you make." Sanji carelessly tossed Fullbody away before taking a drag from his cigarette. "He dared waste our precious food and insulted a cook. I just taught him some manners, that’s all."</p><p>"What the hell is wrong with this place? They're just like pirates! How can you mistreat your customers like this?!" Fullbody yelled furiously as he struggled to sit up. "I'll report this place to headquarters and have you shut down, do you hear me?"</p><p>"You're going to shut us down huh? Well, I'm afraid that leaves me no choice but to kill you." Sanji declared as he turned to face Fullbody, looking stone faced with fury practically wafting off him.</p><p>"What!?" Fullbody choked out.</p><p>"It just gets me so angry…" Sanji began at a normal tone, but his volume rapidly increased to shouting level, even as three other cooks tried to hold him back, afraid that he might really kill the Marine Lieutenant. "To see a spoiled little son of a bitch like you complaining about anything!"</p><p>"Stop it, Sanji! You're going too far!" One of the cooks trying to restrain him yelled.</p><p>"Just who the hell do you think you are, huh?! You shitty bastard!" Sanji almost bit through his cigarette with how hard his teeth were clenched as he glared daggers at Fullbody.</p><p>"Sanji! Are you running wild in my restaurant again?" A new man roared out as he entered the dining room. He had a peg leg and a hilariously tall Chef's Hat. It probably doubled his height. He had dull yellow hair and a long, braided mustache with a short, pointy beard. He wore a chef's uniform draped over his shoulders.</p><p>"Shut up, shitty geezer." Sanji replied in an even tone.</p><p>"It's exactly as it looks. Head Chef Zeff! Sanji beat up some idiot Marine Lieutenant!" Patty informed his boss.</p><p>"Are you trying to sink my restaurant, you little shit?!" Zeff's eyes flashed, right before he swung his peg leg. It smacked Sanji right in the face, sending him crashing to the floor. Fullbody looked ecstatic at Sanji finally getting taken down a peg, before a confused look came over his face as Zeff kicked Sanji only once and then walked over to him. "As for you! Get the hell out of my restaurant!" Zeff's peg leg swung once more and sent Fullbody flying into the wall.</p><p>"You're all crazy!" Fullbody said as best he could from his cracked jaw, 'Just what do they think their customers are? They're all insane! This violent place is just like a Pirate ship!' The Marine thought in panic. He then laid eyes on Luffy and his crew for the first time since they entered. "Wh-what are you pirates doing in here?! My ship should’ve already sunk yours!"</p><p>"Oh, you mean that cannonball? Well, we don't like having our ship destroyed you see." Nami smirked cheekily. "So our Captain returned it to you! I hope you don’t mind sleeping on deck, since your sleeping quarters kind of got destroyed." She waved cheerily. "Bye, bye now." The Straw Hats all started laughing and even Sanji got a chuckle out of it.</p><p>"Lieutenant! Lieutenant Fullbody sir! It's an emergency!" A Marine burst into the dining area, dripping sweat with a look of terror on his face. He zeroed in on Fullbody, not even taking notice of his injured state. "That Krieg Pirate we captured escaped the brig!" He shouted in panic, making some customers in the restaurant panic as well. "It took seven of us to capture him in the first place, and now he's gone!"</p><p>"That's impossible!" Fullbody yelled in shock. "He hasn't eaten in weeks, and we certainly haven't fed him since his capture three days ago! He shouldn't even have the strength to move!"</p><p>"Krieg? ‘That’ Krieg? The strongest pirate in the East Blue?" Some of the customers cried out in panic, Luffy's ears twitched at hearing about a strong pirate.</p><p>"Please forgive m-" The panicked Marine yelled, before he was cut off entirely by a bullet to the back. Blood appeared on the front of his white Marine shirt, even as he slumped forward and crashed to the floor.</p><p>The man behind him walked forward, his boots clacking on the wooden floor, audible in the nearly silent restaurant. The chefs weren't silent, neither was Luffy or his crew, even as the man sat down, "Anything will do. Get me some food!" He said clearly, inclining back on his chair and laying one of his dirty legs on top of the clean table, "This place is a restaurant isn't it?" He was a relatively thin man of average height with short, scruffy hair, a scruffy beard, and dark circles under his eyes, as though he hadn't slept in long time.</p><p>"Welcome, ya squid-faced crook!" Patty came forward, his cheesiest grin on his pear-shaped face. Off to the side, Luffy started to snicker while the rest of the Straw Hats tried to contain their own laughter.</p><p>"Do your ears work? I'm only going to say this once more, so listen up! I'm a customer, so bring me food! Now!" The haggard man demanded with a scowl.</p><p>"That cook is dead…" Fullbody mumbled as he slowly started crawling away backwards.</p><p>"Pardon me, dumbass." Patty began, and neither Luffy nor his crew could take it anymore and started laughing over at their table. "But how are you planning on paying for your meal?" He asked with a huge fake smile.</p><p>"Do ya take lead?" The Krieg Pirate growled as he placed a pistol dead center of Patty's forehead.</p><p>"No money huh?" Patty asked rhetorically. Before the pirate could make another move, Patty's huge forearms smashed him through his chair in a hammer blow.</p><p>"That chair is coming out of your paycheck, Patty!" Zeff yelled at his employee.</p><p>"If you can't pay, then you ain't a customer." Patty stated with his arms crossed.</p><p>"Nice going Patty! Show that idiot pirate who's boss!" Some of the cooks cheered him on, though Zeff and Sanji were notably absent from this cheering. The Straw Hats noticed this with curiosity. Sanji turned and walked into the kitchen. Zeff was looking at Patty and shaking his head as the man curtsied, of all things.</p><p>"Ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy the rest of your meals!" Patty called out, his cheesy grin once again on his face.</p><p>Luffy and Nami eyed Sanji as he left the kitchens with a plate and a cup of water. He walked through a door and out onto the deck. They both stood and trailed after him, eager to see what he would do. When they exited onto the deck above where Sanji had gone the two looked down to see the haggard pirate scarfing down the plate of food Sanji had carried out.</p><p>"Delicious…it's so delicious!" He cried his mouth still full. "It's the most delicious food I've ever eaten! I've never tasted anything so good! I'm so grateful! So grateful! I thought it was over for me!"</p><p>"It's damn good huh?" Sanji grinned.</p><p>"Yeah, that's much better." Nami commented approvingly, as she and Luffy watched the two on the lower deck.</p><p>"How lucky! Looks like you got some food after all!" Luffy chuckled as both the men below started and looked up. "You looked like you were about to die! Shishishi." He then turned to Sanji and pointed at him. "Hey cook! You should join my crew! Be the cook for our pirate ship, will ya?"</p><p>"Huh?" Both of the men looked dumbfounded. Sanji shook his head, "So, you're a Pirate huh?" He grinned lightly. "Well, you better not try anything on this ship. The Head Chef used to be quite the pirate himself."</p><p>"Oh, the old man used to be a pirate?" Luffy questioned curiously.</p><p>"I didn't think you could just quit being a pirate." Nami said dryly. "The hell happened to his bounty then?" She wondered but Sanji just stared at her, with love-struck hearts for eyes. After a moment he shook himself out of it to answer her question.</p><p>"This restaurant's like a treasure to the old man." Sanji grinned. "The rest of us cooks all came here because we admired him; and most of those guys are hot-blooded enough to be pirates themselves." He shrugged. "It’s quite appropriate, seeing how often this place is visited by the real deal."</p><p>"Don’t get a quiet moment in this place, huh?" The Krieg Pirate smirked while shaking his head.</p><p>"It is part of the daily routine nowadays. It's gotten to the point where some guests don't even show up for the food anymore. Some of them come just to watch the fights." Sanji shook his head in exasperation before he slipped his cigarette back into his mouth, "Thanks to that, most of our waiters got scared and ran away."</p><p>"Shishishi!" Luffy chuckled and Nami giggled too, before they both jumped down to the lower deck. "Anyway, join my crew!"</p><p>"I refuse." Sanji looked up at the sky. "I have my own reasons for wanting to work here."</p><p>"Oh, that's too bad…" Nami trailed off sadly, making sure to lean forward and put on her best pout. "I was quite looking forward to eating your delicious food all the time."</p><p>"You…you're on his crew?" Sanji asked looking like his head was steaming and hearts had once more replaced his eyes. Nami nodded with a sweet smile. "Oh, how cruel the seas can be! To be so close, but still so far!"</p><p>"Doesn't matter! I refuse your refusal!" Luffy stated. "You're a good cook so we'll be pirates together!"</p><p>“There he goes.” Nami giggled seeing Luffy once again not caring about being rejected.</p><p>"Hey, at least hear me out." Sanji demanded.</p><p>"Okay, so what's your reason then?" Luffy blinked as he tilted his head.</p><p>"No need to tell you." Sanji replied as he exhaled a puff of smoke.</p><p>"Are you some kind of idiot? You just told me to hear you out." Luffy retorted and Nami couldn't stop herself from bursting into laughter.</p><p>"I just meant you should listen to other people’s opinions! Don't make me chop you up, you shitty Straw Hat!" Sanji grit his teeth and snarled at Luffy.</p><p>"What did you say?" Luffy yelled back. "If you insult my hat again and I'll knock you out!"</p><p>"Uh…Sorry to cut in…" The Krieg Pirate interjected into their conversation.</p><p>"What is it?!" Both of them yelled.</p><p>"The name's Gin." Gin introduced himself. "I'm a member of the Krieg Pirates. You say you're a Pirate kid? What's your goal?"</p><p>"One Piece." Luffy replied, his scowl disappearing as he started grinning brightly. "I'm going to become the Pirate King." Sanji's eyes widened at hearing Luffy’s dream.</p><p>"One Piece… If you're still looking for a cook, I'm guessing that means your crew isn't so big then?" Gin questioned blankly.</p><p>"He's the fifth." Luffy said, pointing his thumb at Sanji.</p><p>"Why are you counting me you shitty Straw Hat?! I already said no!" Sanji yelled at Luffy.</p><p>"You don't seem like a bad kid so let me give you some advice…" Gin offered with a haunted look on his face. "Just give up on going to the Grand Line." He turned away. "You're still young. There's no need to rush things." He held his head with his hands. "The Grand Line is just one ocean amongst the many of this world. If you want to be a pirate there are plenty of other places for you to explore."</p><p>"Eh, One Piece is on the Grand Line, so that's where we have to go." Luffy responded before he started to pick his nose. Nami quickly swatted his hand down and gave him a ‘look’. Luffy huffed before placing his hands in his pockets.</p><p>"Don't you get it kid?!" Gin yelled at him with his eyes wide. "There's no way your little crew of five will survive on the Grand Line!"</p><p>"You're some kind of idiot, aren't you?" Luffy questioned, his head tilted slightly. "If all you ever do is run away from your dreams how are you supposed to make them come true?" Gin’s face became shocked, but off to the side Sanji’s eyes widened.</p><p>"Kid…" Gin said, before shaking himself. "It's really no business of mine if you die." He shrugged. "At least I tried." He jumped into a dinghy at Sanji's offering. "Thank you so much for the food, Sanji!" Gin said, smiling for once. "You're my savior! Would it be alright if I came back here to eat again?"</p><p>"Sure." Sanji grinned. "Any time."</p><p>"Sanji!" Zeff roared from above them.</p><p>"Ah, sorry Sanji…you're going to get yelled at because of me…because you gave me food." Gin apologized.</p><p>"What are you talking about?" Sanji questioned, before kicking the plate and cup lightly and sending them off the side of the ship. "I can’t get scolded if there's no proof."</p><p>"Thank you Sanji! I'll never forget this!" Gin thanked the blonde chef as the small boat started sailing away.</p><p>"Just don't get caught again, Gin!" Sanji waved him off with a grin.</p><p>"Back to work!" Zeff shouted before turning away, an unseen smile crossing his face.</p><p>Before they reached the dining area Sanji turned to Nami with hearts in his eyes once again. "Oh love…laugh if you will at my poor self who cannot resist his passions! If I could be with you, I would sail any ocean and walk any path, be it pirate or even devil! Alas, there is a great obstacle between us!"</p><p>"Obstacle you say?" Zeff questioned as he turned and looked gruffly at Sanji whose heart-eyes shattered as he turned away from the beautiful orange-haired girl to lock eyes with Zeff. "Don't beat around the bush, you shitty brat. You're talking about me." He stated while crossing his arms. "This is a good chance for you to get off this boat. Get out of here and join them. I don't need someone like you in my restaurant."</p><p>"Excuse me? I'm not sure I heard you right, shitty geezer." Sanji did not look pleased at what he’d just heard. Standing straight and staring Zeff dead in the eye. "I've been the Sous Chef of this place for nearly a decade. So just what exactly do you mean when you tell me I'm not needed?"</p><p>"It's no big mystery, you shitty brat." Zeff scoffed at the blonde chef.</p><p>"Well now we know where he learned to talk from." Nami playfully bumped Luffy with her shoulder as they watched the back and forth.</p><p>"All you ever do is pick fights with the guests and sniff around the ladies like a horny dog." Zeff didn't look amused in the least. "You can't cook a decent meal to save your life…" Both the Straw Hats frowned at that untrue statement. Sanji's food was the best they'd had in their lives. They both noticed Sanji's clenched fists too. "You're just unnecessary baggage holding the place down. Not to mention the fact that none of the other cooks want you around. So, go be a Pirate you shitty brat. It's better if you just get the hell off my ship." Zeff finished while staring Sanji down.</p><p>"You shitty geezer. Have you been waiting to say this shit for a while?" Sanji demanded as he reached forward and snatched Zeff's collar in a tight grip. "I can ignore all the rest of your crap, but I can't ignore you insulting my cooking! I'm staying here no matter what you say! Got that?!" The blonde demanded.</p><p>"How dare you grab the collar of the Head Chef!" Zeff grabbed him by the arm and flung him over his head and slammed him onto the floor so fast that Sanji couldn't even react to it. "You little ingrate!" Zeff yelled as he turned to walk away.</p><p>"I'm not leaving, you hear me! I'll stay here until the day you die! No matter how you try to chase me out, I'll continue to be a cook here!" Sanji yelled at Zeff's back as he stood up from the floor.</p><p>"I ain't dying for at least another hundred years, you shitty brat." Zeff didn't even turn around and kept walking.</p><p>"Pretty damn mouthy for a shitty geezer." Sanji muttered as he dusted off his suit.</p><p>"Looks like you just got fired, so now you can come be my coo-" Luffy began only for Sanji to cut him off.</p><p>"As if!" Sanji yelled right in his face before walking back into the kitchen.</p><p>“I don’t think you’re going to be recruiting him so easily, Luffy.” Nami remarked as they made their way back to the Going Merry.</p><p>“Nah, I’ll get him to join!” Luffy grinned widely. “I already refused his refusal! Can’t take that back!”</p><p>“Only you Luffy, only you.” Nami giggled while playfully rolling her eyes.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Well someone is being stubborn! This chapter stuck to canon a bit more closely than I’d have liked but the events need to happen in this order for Krieg to have any reason to come to Baratie. That way Luffy can beat another East Blue ‘Big Name’ and have a legitimate reason to have a more appropriate first bounty. Not to worry the battles won’t go as they did in canon next chapter! But on the plus side Luffy and Nami are much closer and are starting to explore physical intimacy more! Will there be a Lemon soon? Will Nami eventually get the ‘shock staff’ she asked for? Will the World’s Greatest Swordsman still show up? Find out in the next chapters!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Pirate Admiral Don Krieg</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! Krieg is coming, what is Luffy and the Straw Hats response? Will Sanji join the crew? Will anyone else?</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 10 – Pirate Admiral Don Krieg</strong>
</p><p>It had been two days since the Straw Hat pirates had arrived at Baratie. The crew was ordering breakfast after their morning training. Nami, Zoro and Usopp had been progressing well with their physical training and their Haki was improving a little each day. Zoro was still leaps ahead of Nami and Usopp with Armament Haki but the Navigator and Gunner were ahead of him when it came to Observation. Luffy thought they were all doing well and let them know that after each session; even the ones where all three crew members had sparred with him and were left bruised and exhausted. The crew was inside the restaurant enjoying a delicious breakfast cooked by Sanji, since the blonde wouldn’t let any of the other chefs cook for Nami, when a scream shattered the calm morning atmosphere of the restaurant.</p><p>"That’s Don Krieg’s pirate ship!" A terrified guest yelled, pointing out the window.</p><p>"A skull with two hourglasses to either side…to threaten their enemies… there’s no doubt! That’s Krieg’s flag! Why is he here?!" Another screamed while staring out the window in terror. Pandemonium erupted in the ship as all the guests scrambled to leave before the infamous pirate arrived.</p><p>"No way…I barely touched him…he’d have been hit harder in a bar fight…no way Krieg would be coming here to kill me, right?" Patty questioned, trembling with his head in his hands, his face deathly pale.</p><p>"Are you happy Patty?!" Another chef demanded. "Aren't you so glad you messed with him?! Well? Aren’t you going to chase him off, you’re the tough guy here!"</p><p>"This is really bad! Shouldn't we set sail and get out of here?" Usopp asked panicking.</p><p>"That's a pretty big ship." Luffy noted; excitement in his voice. He, Nami, and Zoro were currently ignoring Usopp. Nami looked a bit apprehensive, everyone in East Blue had heard of Don Krieg and his Armada before, but she refused to turn tail and run anymore. "You think Gin came back to repay his debt?" The straw-hatted Captain asked.</p><p>"I doubt it." Sanji took a drag from his cigarette. "But it's strange…" They all looked on as the ship came into full view through the morning mist. "That ship is a wreck. What kind of storm did they get caught in?" True to Sanji’s words the giant Galleon was an utter disaster. The sails were torn and ripped. The figurehead of a roaring saber-toothed cat was half gone. The main mast was damaged about halfway up; the wood looked like it was barely holding together. All in all, it looked like the ship had been through a horrifying storm of some kind.</p><p>The door leading into the restaurant was slammed open, revealing a large silhouette. The crew of the Baratie looked on wide-eyed as the shadow came into the light. It was Gin, holding up a much larger man. The hunched over man was large and muscular. His hair was grey, and he had thick sideburns, with bandages wrapped around his head. He wore a baggy yellow leopard-print shirt with a dark fur-lined cape over it, held onto his large frame by a large golden chain. The man might have had an intimidating appearance if he wasn't hunched over looking half-dead. Gin was literally the only reason the man was standing up at all.</p><p>"Pardon the intrusion…" Even the man’s voice sounded weak. "But could I have some food…and water? If it is money you want, I’ve got plenty."</p><p>"He's starving." Luffy noted, examining the other pirate.</p><p>"Wonder what happened." Sanji wondered gazing at the man with eyes that held a look of understanding.</p><p>“The hell?" Patty questioned. "This weak looking guy is Don Krieg?" Krieg tried to take another step forward, but he just keeled over and fell, unable to stand any longer.</p><p>"Don Krieg!" Gin cried out in shock. "Please, save my Captain! Get him some food and water! He'll die at this rate!" He looked out into a sea of faces, searching for some sympathy. But as Zeff wasn't here and Sanji and the Straw Hats were off to the side, there was none to be found. He had a look of disbelief on his face as no one moved to do anything.</p><p>"Ahahaha!" Patty burst out laughing. "This is perfect! This is what the infamous Don Krieg looks like?!"</p><p>"We’re paying customers this time! We have money! Plenty of it! You have no reason to turn us away, damn it!" Gin roared out enraged.</p><p>"Someone call the Marines! They won't get another chance like this!" Patty crowed, ignoring the furious Gin. "Don't give him get a single scrap of food!"</p><p>"If we feed him, it's obvious that he'll attack the ship! I ain't giving him a single drop of water!" One of the panicked chefs swore.</p><p>"I won't do anything!" Krieg croaked out. "If you give me food, I promise I'll quietly withdraw…please…help me!" He was bowing down on his knees.</p><p>"Don Krieg!" Gin called, tears in his eyes. "Stop! Don't do this! A great man like you shouldn't be lowering his head! It's too shameful!"</p><p>"I'm begging! I don't care if it's scraps or leftovers! I'll eat anything you have to give me! Anything!" Krieg's voice was hoarse and defeated. Tears were leaking from Gin's eyes.</p><p>"Trying to earn some sympathy?" Patty harrumphed unmoved.</p><p>"Hey, move it Patty." Sanji said; a plate and a bottle of wine in his hands. He spun and his foot lashed out. His heel caught Patty square on his large cheek and sent him careening to the floor with a thud. "Here Gin, give him this." The two gaped in astonishment, before Krieg started scarfing down his meal with groans of relief.</p><p>"Sanji!" A cook with sunglasses, called Carne, yelled in shock. "Take that food back this instant! Don't you know what kind of guy Krieg is?! He's the ruler of East Blue! The King of Deception! Krieg disguised himself as a Marine after escaping prison and killed the commanding officer of the ship he ended up stealing! He's attacked peaceful ports and towns, while waving a Marine Flag to fool them into letting him get close! He's waved white flags at his enemies before attacking them when their guards were down! He's scum who will do anything to win! That's how he made it to the top! His strength ain't no exaggeration either! You really think he'll leave after you feed him?! That's impossible for a man like him! Letting a demon like him starve is good for the world!" Carne was proven correct in short order. Krieg gulped down the last of his food and clenched his fists in triumph. With a roar, he threw a punch and sent Sanji flying. Almost everyone in the restaurant dropped their jaws in terror.</p><p>"Don Krieg!" Gin yelled hysterically. "This isn't what you promised! I guided you here because you swore you wouldn't harm anyone! That man is our savior!" Don Krieg's large hand grabbed onto his shoulder and tightened harshly. "Gaahh!" Gin cried out in pain as his shoulder was crushed beneath his Captain's grip.</p><p>"Ah, that was good." Krieg stated. "I feel like I'm back to my normal self." He grinned as he looked around, before sneering at everyone.</p><p>"So…the snake bears his fangs at last." Sanji smirked as he sat up. He was bleeding slightly but not very injured over all.</p><p>"Nice ship." Krieg commented as he cracked his neck. "I'll take it."</p><p>"I told you…" Carne stated, sweating. "This is the true Don Krieg! He’ll take over the ship!"</p><p>"Don Krieg!" Gin hissed, clutching his throbbing shoulder. "What about your promise!" Krieg didn't even spare him a glance.</p><p>"My ship's all torn up." Krieg said lightly. "I'll be needing a new one, so after my business with you all is finished; I'll let you all leave." Though no one there actually believed his words since Krieg had already proven himself to be untrustworthy. "I have a hundred subordinates still alive on my ship, and they're all starving. You all will prepare enough food to feed them." He had a malevolent glint in his eye as he stared at the cooks, before roaring when it became clear that none of them were moving to follow his orders. "Well?! Make it quick! Some of them have already starved to death!"</p><p>"Feed a hundred men who are only going to attack us once we do so? You must be out of your mind! We refuse!" Carne bit out.</p><p>"You seem to be under the mistaken impression that it was a request." Krieg replied darkly, causing many cooks to cringe at the tone. "I gave an order, and no one disobeys my orders!"</p><p>"I…I'm sorry Sanji!" Gin apologized. "I never intended for this to happen!"</p><p>"Sanji, you shitty cook! This is all your fault! Because of you we're in this mess…where do you think you’re going?!" Patty shouted with his eyes popping out of his head as he watched Sanji walk away.</p><p>"Where am I going? Isn't it clear? I'm going to the kitchen. I have a hundred meals to prepare." Sanji replied with a raised eyebrow.</p><p>"Smart man." Krieg smirked; while the rest of the cook’s jaws dropped at the Sous Chef’s response.</p><p>"Like hell you will!" The other cooks yelled as they all pulled guns out and aimed them straight for Sanji's head. "Are you Krieg's secret agent Sanji? Is that why you're doing this?! You're not taking a fucking step into that kitchen!"</p><p>"Go ahead and shoot then." Sanji said blandly not shaken in the slightest. The cooks recoiled, some even jerking their guns back. "You think I don't know full well that they're scum?" The blonde scoffed. "None of that matters. Thinking of the consequences is too much of a hassle. If I see someone starving in front of me, then it is my sworn duty as a cook to feed them! If you want to stop me then you better pull those triggers! If not, save them for Krieg's grunts." He took a drag from his cigarette. "I feed hungry men. I don't care about what happens to them after that. If they then decide to bite the hand that fed them, I'll kill them myself." The other cook's look of awe at Sanji’s words was wiped away instantly when Patty smashed him in the back of the head with his large fists.</p><p>"What's that idiot doing attacking my cook?" Luffy scowled, miffed at seeing his nakama, since he’d already decided to have Sanji on his crew, hit from behind.</p><p>"Hold this idiot down!" Patty yelled as he turned to Sanji, holding a long item wrapped in a white sheet. "I know full well that you've fed the people I've turned away! I've ignored all of that, because I can't say who was right and who was wrong! But this time you're definitely in the wrong! I'll protect this place my own damn self." He lifted his package and whipped off the sheet, revealing large, shrimp-shaped hand cannon. "Luckily we only have Krieg himself to deal with! He can't beat all of us!" He lifted the cannon and took aim. "This is the Baratie! We have Pirates coming here looking to cause trouble every day! We're more than prepared to deal with your kind!" Krieg looked completely unimpressed by the cook’s declaration. "Since you enjoyed your meal so much, how about some dessert, Krieg?! Indigestion Meatball Special!" Patty roared and fired a cannonball directly at Krieg. The ball hit the large pirate and engulfed him in a large explosion.</p><p>"Don!" Gin yelled in shock as his Captain was blown through the doors and out of the restaurant.</p><p>"Ah damn it. I blew the doors out. Owner Zeff is going to have my head for this…" Patty frowned looking at the result of his shot.</p><p>"It's fine Patty." Carne reassured. "It was collateral damage from defending this place. Owner Zeff will understand."</p><p>"And what will you do with his underlings?" Sanji asked from his position on the floor. The cooks didn't get a chance to answer before someone else spoke up.</p><p>"That dessert tasted like shit." Krieg walked back in, not even scuffed up. He was wearing golden-colored armor that covered his entire upper body. That explained the large, baggy shirt the man had been wearing. It was the only way he’d been able to hide the armor he’d been wearing underneath. "You shitty cooks…this is the worst restaurant I've ever been to."</p><p>"Get him!" Patty cried out before all the cooks grabbed gigantic tableware-styled weapons and rushed the large man.</p><p>"You annoying little shits!" Krieg roared, before he pulled out two pistols and ten more came out of various parts of his armor. He immediately opened fire, knocking all the cooks away at once. As all the cooks collapsed, their bodies riddled with gunshot wounds, Krieg yelled again. "You insignificant worms think you can defy me! I'm the strongest! This steel arm, more powerful than any other! This unbreakable armor made of Wootz Steel! These diamond fists which can pulverize anything! My entire body is a finely tuned weapon! I'm the Fleet Admiral of fifty ships and five thousand men! I've won every batt-"</p><p>"Will you shut up already?" A voice asked loudly over the pirate’s ranting. Dead silence followed that question as Krieg turned mechanically to Luffy, rage literally pouring from him while a vein visibly pulsed on his forehead. "Who cares about your fancy toys?" Luffy chuckled. "You aren't the strongest of anything."</p><p>"What was that, you damn brat?" Krieg growled out through gritted teeth.</p><p>"Was I unclear or something?" Luffy asked confused before turning to Nami. "I wasn’t unclear, was I?"</p><p>"No Captain, you spoke clearly and simply. He’s just an idiot." Nami giggled. Seeing Krieg face-to-face wiped any nervousness from her mind. Any man who ranted like that and covered himself in 'unbreakable' armor clearly wasn’t confident in his actual strength. Hell, the idiot’s legs were left unarmored! What kind of moron only wore the top half of a suit of armor?! His pants didn’t even look padded for minimal protection!</p><p>"You stupid little brat." Krieg growled. He would have said more, but a giant sack landed in front of him. "What's this?"</p><p>"Owner Zeff!" The cooks shouted in shock.</p><p>"Food for a hundred men." Zeff lazily replied. "Hurry up and bring it to your men."</p><p>"Did…did they say 'Zeff?'" Krieg looked like he was sweating suddenly.</p><p>"Sir! How could you give them that food! Once they recover they're going to be gunning for the ship!" A cook yelled.</p><p>"Oh they will, will they?" Zeff had a smirk on his face while Krieg's face darkened. "That's only if they have any fighting spirit left in them…isn't that right, Grand Line dropouts?"</p><p>"Even Don Krieg couldn't make it?!" The cooks exclaimed. "The strongest of the East Blue was defeated by the Grand Line!" Gin was holding his face with his hands and almost sobbing.</p><p>"You're 'Red Leg' Zeff!" Krieg stared at Zeff like he couldn’t believe who he was talking to. "The peerless cook and Captain…so you were still alive."</p><p>"And? My being alive has nothing to do with you. As you can see, I'm a cook full time now." Zeff replied.</p><p>"A cook full time? That's an interesting way to put it. More appropriate would be to say you can do nothing else now." Krieg laughed darkly. "To hear of Red Leg Zeff is to hear of the man who could kick so hard his shoes would be dyed red with the blood of his enemies…the man who could break cliffs with only his legs and leave imprints of his shoes on steel! The man who would never use his hands in a fight! You're a laughable nobody now! Full time cook? Ha! More like you can never put your red shoes back on! You're a cook now because it's the only thing you can do!" He grinned. "I heard you died in a shipwreck. It seems you managed to survive, though it cost you one of your precious legs. With it gone, you can't fight anymore." Sanji looked like he wanted to go tear Krieg apart himself, a look of absolute fury on his face.</p><p>"As long as I have these hands, it doesn't matter if I can fight or not. I can still cook." Zeff replied uncaringly. "So, are you going to get to the point, or are you going to continue blathering?"</p><p>"Red Leg Zeff! The man who once braved the waters of the Devil's Hideout! The Grand Line! You not only sailed those waters, but you returned without injury! You must have kept a log of your voyage! Hand it over!" Krieg demanded.</p><p>"Ooh! You've been to the Grand Line, old man?" Luffy had stars in his eyes looking at the old chef.</p><p>"I have." Zeff confirmed. "And you're right that I kept a log. Indeed, I still have it to this day. But I shan't be handing it to the likes of you. That logbook is the pride of me and my crew. It's much too valuable to give to a weakling like you."</p><p>"Weakling?!" Krieg roared. "I can throw a battleship bare-handed! How am I weak?!"</p><p>"There's no point trying to explain it to an idiot." Zeff smirked at him without a care in the world.</p><p>"Then I’ll just take it from your corpse, old man!" Krieg declared as he clenched his fist in front of him. "It's true that I came back defeated from the Grand Line, but even so, I'm still the mighty Don Krieg!" He growled out, taking a step forward. Zeff didn't even flinch. "That dark sea which sends weak men to their knees…I had the power! I had the ambition! I had the manpower!" He ranted. "I only lacked information! It was my only flaw! That is why I'll take that logbook from you! Once I have it, I'll reassemble my crew and conquer the Grand Line! I'll find One Piece and become the Pirate King!"</p><p>"Like hell you will, bastard!" Luffy yelled. Krieg stiffened, enraged again as he turned to face Luffy. "There's only room for one Pirate King, and that's going to be me." The rest of the cook’s dropped their jaws and backed away from him, afraid that Krieg would charge the straw-hatted young man in his fury.</p><p>"I'll let that comment slide, you stupid brat." Krieg eyed him, looking down on the younger man.</p><p>"Of course you’d say that." Luffy remarked amused. "All your guns are empty." Krieg stiffened at the call out. "You don’t seem willing to fight without all of your tricks."</p><p>"You plan to fight, Luffy?" Zoro had Wado Ichimonji over his shoulder. "Want a hand?" He asked looking forward to the potential fight.</p><p>"That's your crew? Two punks and a little girl? Don't make me laugh." Krieg mocked.</p><p>"This guy too." Luffy said, pointing at Sanji, who immediately yelled his refusal. "So that's five."</p><p>"Don’t try and mock me you little shit!" Krieg finally snapped. "My entire five thousand man crew was wiped out on that nightmare sea! All because we didn’t have the proper info-"</p><p>"It doesn’t really matter if you had five thousand men." Nami sardonically stated, forcing him to grit his teeth at being interrupted. The orangette leaned into Luffy’s side, the straw-hatted man wrapping an arm around her waist. He grinned at her while Sanji looked on, a small black cloud forming over his head. "If you’re not strong enough the Grand Line will end you; that’s how it got the name ‘Pirate’s Graveyard’." Everyone there watched on in silence as Krieg’s face turned purple with rage. "Five thousand and only one hundred made it back. You must just take anyone you can get into your crew, huh?" She darkly mused, while also leaving the jibe that he was incapable of finding real talent for his crew unsaid. "Of course, with an idiot like you for a Captain, it's probably some kind of miracle you even have a hundred left."</p><p>"You little bitch!" Krieg roared as he pointed a gun at her, apparently forgetting he was out of ammo. "We’ll see how mouthy you are when I have you choking on my coc-!"</p><p>No one.</p><p>Not a single person on the Baratie saw what transpired next.</p><p>Even Zeff with all of his experience hadn’t actually seen the straw-hatted Captain move. But the results spoke for themselves. Krieg was launched backwards at alarming speeds, his armor cracked and bile flying from his mouth. The pirate crashed into his own ship and smashed through it, disappearing into the depths of the large Galleon. Luffy stood where Krieg use to be, right next to Gin, with his right fist still outstretched. Gin looked at Luffy as if the Devil himself had suddenly appeared beside him.</p><p>"Fast." Zeff looked rather impressed as Luffy dropped his arm back to his side. The entire Straw Hat crew was scowling at what the other Captain had said. Luffy, Zoro, and Usopp because of what he’d said about their nakama. Nami because, while she’d heard similar things in her time as a thief, was now not only strong enough to deal with assholes like Krieg; but was in a relationship with the only man she’d let touch her in such a way. A weak, piece of shit pirate like Krieg didn’t get to even fantasize about doing such things to her! With that thought in mind Nami sauntered up beside Luffy and gave him a peck on the cheek.</p><p>"Thanks Luffy…though I kinda wanted to hit him myself." Nami scowled at the damaged Galleon, especially the new hole Luffy had made with Krieg’s body. Luffy smiled fondly at her, delighted at her newfound spirit, before turning back. Luffy walked over and grabbed the bag of food. He walked back towards Gin and dropped the large sack in front of the stunned man.</p><p>“Go feed your crew. This is your only chance.” Luffy stated staring Gin directly in the eye. The scruffy man nodded before grabbing the sack and running towards the Galleon.</p><p>“What now?” Usopp asked looking between his Captain and the doors of the Baratie.</p><p>“Now it’s become a fight between Pirate Crews.” Luffy stated with authority. “Usopp go get ready for battle, these guys aren’t sailing away from here, not after threatening my nakama.” Usopp nodded and headed off to the Going Merry to get his pistols and his trick ammo slingshot. Luffy then turned towards Zeff before speaking to the former pirate. “Sorry, old man, but you and your cooks will need to stand back. You know what it means when two crews fight.”</p><p>"There's no need to apologize, kid." Zeff replied with a nod. "Everyone on this ship did what they thought was right." He knew what a fight between Pirate Crews meant. He’d had plenty in his own time as a pirate. It wasn’t something civilians had any place in. Two crews fought, but only one sailed away, that was the nature of a Pirate Crew battle.</p><p>"Owner Zeff!" Several cooks yelled. "How could you say what Sanji did was right?! It's his fault we're going to be attacked!" One of them turned to Sanji and started screaming in his face. "Was this your plan all along Sanji?! Was this how you wanted to become the Head Chef?! Or have you just completely lost your damn mind?! Huh? Which is it?"</p><p>"Shut up you stupid little eggplants!" Zeff roared and the cooks flinched back, looking wide-eyed at Zeff. Sanji's head dipped, his face shadowed. "Do ANY of you know what it feels like to truly starve? Do any of you know what it feels like to be so hungry you beg for death?!" They all looked at him, shocked and confused. "Not one of you fools knows how terrifying and painful it is to be lost at sea with no food and water! The difference between you lot and Sanji, is that he knows!" The cooks turned to an uncaring Sanji with looks of shock. "There's no use crying over spilt milk. If any of you want to leave, there's the door." Zeff scoffed, waving at the blown out front doors.</p><p>"I'm stayin’ right here. I couldn't live with myself if I left without a fight." Patty declared.</p><p>"Same here, I live and work in this place. Ain't nowhere for me to go." Carne nodded.</p><p>“None of you dumb eggplants will be fighting anymore!” Zeff put his foot down; the authority that he spoke with stopped any of his cooks from disagreeing with him. “This has become a fight between Pirate Crews; it has nothing to do with civilians any longer. That straw-hatted Captain feels personally attacked, offended, and probably more than pissed about how Krieg treated his nakama. He’s staking his dream and his crew on the outcome of this fight. That is a man with the conviction and strength necessary for the Grand Line. That is a REAL pirate.”</p><p>“Owner Zeff…” The cooks trailed off listening to the surety and fire behind their boss’ words.</p><p>“I’m back and ready, Captain!” Usopp announced as he walked back through the doors.</p><p>“Great, get over here and let’s finish eating! I want to hear more about the Grand Line from the old man!” Luffy laughed as Zeff sat down with the Straw Hats with an amused snort. “So what was the Grand Line like when you sailed it, old man?” He asked his wide grin stretched across his face.</p><p>“Heh, it’s been years since I’ve told any stories of my pirate days.” Zeff chuckled before he started to speak of his time as Captain of the Cook Pirates.</p><p>"Shishishi! Sounds like a fun place! We definitely have to go there!" Luffy was grinning madly by the end of Zeff’s tale.</p><p>"Could you at least pretend to be scared like the rest of us?!" Usopp demanded only for Nami and Zoro to look at him with raised eyebrows. The Gunman suddenly realized that he was the only one of his crew shaken by the story. ‘Damn it! I’m going to be a brave warrior of the seas! I can’t let the Grand Line intimidate me!’ He thought to himself trying to push past his fear and history of being a coward.</p><p>"Looks like I made the right decision, huh Luffy? My goal lies in the path of yours." Zoro was grinning while gripping Wado Ichimonji’s handle.</p><p>“Bunch of idiots." Sanji deadpanned from where he’d joined them a couple minutes into Zeff’s tale. "You're the type to rush to your deaths." Sanji turned and exhaled the smoke from his cigarette.</p><p>"True." Zoro easily replied. "But leave out the 'idiot' part." He cast his determined gaze on the blonde chef. "Ever since I decided I would become the Greatest Swordsman in the World, I cast away any attachment to life. The only one who can call me an idiot is me."</p><p>"Damn right." Luffy grinned widely smacking the table with his palm.</p><p>“Yep.” Nami chirped with a cute smile.</p><p>"As a man who will be a brave warrior of the seas, I must say the same." Usopp crossed his arms. Zoro gave the Gunman a questioning look. “Shut it!” The Gunman snapped making the Swordsman grin. Zeff finally had an expression on his face other than seriousness. He was smirking broadly, looking at the small crew.</p><p>“Sounds like my old dream, and this dumb little eggplant’s too.” Zeff chuckled.</p><p>“You have a dream too, Sanji?!” Luffy’s eyes had turned to sparkles again at hearing ‘the word’ and he practically bounced in his seat wanting to hear it.</p><p>“You ever heard of the All Blue?” Sanji sighed exhaling a puff of smoke as he looked over at Luffy.</p><p>“Nope.” Luffy shook his head. “But I want to know more about it now!” Sanji huffed before a smile crossed his face as he proceeded to tell the Straw Hats about his dream.</p><p>-Krieg’s Galleon-</p><p>Outside, the surviving members of the Krieg Pirates were gorging themselves happily, enjoying the feeling of strength returning to their bodies. "We’re saved!" They cheered in relief. "We're alive! It's like a dream! We finally escaped that nightmare! The 'Pirate's Graveyard!'"</p><p>"That's right!" Krieg roared to his men while fastening his spiked cape around his shoulders. "And we'll sail right back to the Grand Line soon." The crew froze and stiffened up, looking at their Captain as though he were insane. "What's with those expressions?" He demanded as the vein on his forehead began pulsing again.</p><p>"W-we're going back there?" One of his crew asked in terror. His answer was a bullet from the pistol Krieg held in his hand.</p><p>"Any others want to disagree?” Krieg demanded. The pirates pretended to be happy, fake cheering and all. Krieg returned to smirking. "First we'll ditch this destroyed ship and seize that restaurant." He ordered his crew. "Your enemies are a bunch of shitty cooks, so there should be no issues."</p><p>-Inside the Baratie-</p><p>Sanji had just finished explaining his dream of finding the All Blue to the Straw Hats. All of them found the idea of a sea that was home to every fish in the world amazing. Luffy was drooling slightly at the thought making Nami giggle. Even Zoro thought it was a good dream for a chef, though he wouldn’t say it out loud.</p><p>“How’re you going to find the All Blue while you work here though?” Luffy asked wondering if the Baratie sailed around looking for it or something.</p><p>“He won’t, that’s why I keep telling him to leave this restaurant and go look for it!” Zeff growled at the blonde.</p><p>“Shut it you shitty geezer.” Sanji grumbled back. “You know why I’m not leaving.”</p><p>“Boy I didn’t hack off my own leg just so you could NOT live your life and chase your dreams!” Zeff roared at the blonde, Sanji flinched back at the blunt statement from the old man.</p><p>“He’s got a point.” Luffy nodded. “If it’s both your dreams to find All Blue then why are you fighting with the old man so much?”</p><p>“If you don’t explain your stupidity to them I will.” Zeff warned the blonde Sous Chef.</p><p>“Fine…” Sanji grit his teeth and smashed out his cigarette into the ashtray that was on the table. Shortly afterwards the Straw Hats learned of Sanji’s history with Zeff, how the two had nearly starved to death on a godforsaken pillar of stone out in the middle of the ocean. How Zeff had given Sanji all their food and eaten his own leg to survive. By the end Sanji was morose and Zeff was stone-faced.</p><p>“I agree with Zeff, you’re kind of an idiot.” Nami sighed making Zeff snort in amusement while Sanji looked horrified that the orangette thought anything negative of him. “He sacrificed his leg, his health, and all of the food just so you could live. Yet your idea of repaying him is to NOT search for your shared dream? That makes no sense at all.”</p><p>“But…I…” Sanji tried only for Zoro to interrupt.</p><p>“Dreams bequeathed to you by another should be chased to the ends of the Earth. Nothing should stand in your way, not even the possibility of death.” Zoro stated his hand wrapped tightly around Wado Ichimonji under the table.</p><p>“I…” Sanji tried again only for Luffy to speak up.</p><p>“Join my crew Sanji! We’ll sail to every corner of every sea if we have to!” Luffy promised his fist raised in front of him. “Come chase your dream with us!” He offered as he held his hand out to the blonde chef. Sanji looked at the offered hand before glancing at Zeff.</p><p>“Do it Sanji…do it for both of us.” Zeff nodded to the young man who’d become like his own son. Sanji’s eyes widened at Zeff’s words and the intense look his surrogate father was giving him. Turning back to Luffy and his still outstretched hand, Sanji made his decision.</p><p>“Well shit…I guess I’m coming aboard, Captain.” Sanji sighed before grinning as he took Luffy’s hand and the two shook on it.</p><p>“Yeah!” Luffy cheered as he raised both fists into the air. “New nakama!” The rest of the Straw Hats cheered, except Zoro who only raised his glass into the air. “We’ll have a welcome party after we’re done with these bastards and their damn Captain.”</p><p>“Well. Guess I get to fight for this place now that I’m part of the crew. Good to know.” Sanji grinned as he looked towards Zeff. “It’s a Pirate Crew fight, right old man?”</p><p>“Do what you want little eggplant.” Zeff scoffed while waving Sanji off.</p><p>“Geezer.” Sanji tsked before finishing off his own tea. Luffy perked up a minute later and stood up from the table with a grin.</p><p>“They’re coming.” Luffy announced and the rest of the Straw Hats stood up with him. Sanji stood as well but looked perplexed about how Luffy knew the Krieg Pirates were coming. He didn’t hear anything yet, no battle cries or gunfire, so what tipped Luffy off?</p><p>“Deploy the fins! I don’t want them busting up the restaurant!” Zeff ordered and the cooks rushed to fulfill their boss’ order. The Straw Hats emerged out on the small deck looking up towards the Krieg Galleon. Now that they were outside they could hear the roar of the pirates as they prepared to attack the Baratie. Suddenly the restaurant ship shook and a few moments later a large deck emerged from the water.</p><p>“That’s so cool!” Luffy called out with wide eyes.</p><p>“They’re the fins.” Sanji explained. “Large decks that we can raise to keep the fighting outside. Saves us money on replacing furniture and the like.”</p><p>“Here they come.” Nami mentioned as the Krieg Pirates practically poured down a makeshift gangplank and quickly filled up the larger deck.</p><p>“Get the hell out of the way unless you wanna die!” One Krieg pirate threatened as the large group of nearly a hundred men laughed and brandished their weapons.</p><p>“Usopp…say ‘hello’ for us.” Luffy requested and his Gunner stepped forward after a deep breath to steady his nerves.</p><p>“Aye, Captain.” Usopp replied as he stepped in front of his crew and stared down the larger pirate crew.</p><p>“You have a death wish or somethin’?” Another Krieg pirate demanded as the whole group started stalking forward. Usopp didn’t respond verbally, the Krieg pirates barely saw the teen’s hands move to his pistols before the first two rounds were fired. One pirate took a shot directly between the eyes while the one next to him suddenly had a hole in his shirt, directly over his heart, and blood quickly soaked the garment as both men collapsed. The other pirates hadn’t even registered their dead comrades before more bullets were tearing through their ranks. Usopp shocked all of the on looking cooks of the Baratie, as well as Sanji and Zeff, when he tossed his first two revolvers into the air and drew the next two. Usopp’s rapid quick draw juggling was once again shown to the world. In a matter of seconds twenty four rounds were fired and a quarter of the Krieg Pirates lay dead on the Baratie’s large deck.</p><p>“Nami, Zoro, Sanji, deal with the rest. I’m going to finish off Krieg as soon as he gets down here.” Luffy spoke and the three nodded back. Luffy was looking forward to seeing how well Nami and Zoro had progressed since their last fight. He was also eager to see just what Sanji could do.</p><p>Zoro drew all three swords and placed Wado in his mouth. With a glance at the panicked Krieg Pirates, who were all still reeling from the loss of a quarter of their crew, Zoro rushed forward and made his first attack. The three blades flowed through every pirate that stood before Zoro, the green-haired swordsman barely slowing as he cut through one pirate’s stomach before slashing another’s throat. In what would look like only a few motions to an outsider Zoro had crossed the span of the deck leaving behind twenty bodies.</p><p>Nami leaped forward with her staff in hand going towards the left of the horde of pirates. With a steady breath she sank into her Observation and attacked. The first pirate she encountered didn’t even register her being there before she’d clocked him across the temple. The man went down with a noticeable depression in the side of his head. The next pirate tried to jerk back from the orangette but couldn’t escape the staff’s reach. His jaw cracked as the staff caught him hard across the face. A cracking sound and the odd angle the man’s neck suddenly stopped at made it obvious his neck had snapped as well. Nami spun to dodge a panicked sword swing before her staff swung around and took out her attacker’s ankle. The pirate went down screaming before Nami slammed her staff down on his head and silenced him. A quick jab to the throat sent another pirate to the deck gasping for air that he’d never get through his crushed windpipe. On and on it went Nami able to dodge with minimal movement thanks to her Observation. The panicked Krieg Pirates couldn’t touch her and more and more of them lay beaten, broken, or dead behind her further increasing the remaining pirates’ panic.</p><p>Sanji huffed as he leaped the entire distance between his starting point and the Krieg Pirates. The first pirate couldn’t even scream before his face nearly collapsed under Sanji’s shoe. A front kick sent the next pirate flying into the drink with a broken sternum. A roundhouse to the head sent another pirate cartwheeling into the deck with a sickening thud. Sanji spun unleashing kicks that most of the Krieg Pirates couldn’t even see. Men went sailing off the deck screaming from broken limbs or silent from being unconscious or dead. The Sous Chef knew this would be the last time he’d get to fight for the place that had been his home for the last several years. So with that thought in mind Sanji let loose sending pirates flying off the Baratie crippled or dead. An axe kick finished off the last pirate near him the man’s skull cracked and indented by Sanji’s heel as he crumpled to the deck, dead.</p><p>Nami had just slammed her staff into the midsection of the last pirate near her, the man was actually lifted off his feet and sent flying towards the water only for a large…something, to suddenly emerge from the ocean and the defeated pirate crashed into it with a metallic thud. The new guy, as it turned out the thing was a man, started laughing.</p><p>"Behold! My invincible iron wall!" He was wearing rather, odd, attire according to everyone else at the Baratie. He had giant iron plates on both his front and his back, which made him look round. They covered his body from crotch to collar. On his feet, knees, elbows, hands, and even his head were smaller iron plates, and every single one of them had a brilliant looking pearl in the middle. Nami idly wondered how much each of them might sell for.</p><p>“I’m ‘Iron Shield’ Pearl!” The now named Pearl started laughing. "I see you’ve been dealing with my crew little girl. But I’ll be the one to end you!”</p><p>"You don’t say? Well I’ve dealt with weird looking pirates before. I’m sure you won’t be too different." Nami replied with confidence.</p><p>"You? Take me down? Don't make me laugh." Pearl started chuckling, "In the past sixty one fights I've been in, I've won them all without a single scratch. You might be pretty good with that little staff, but I’ve protected my entire body!" He boasted. "In every single fight I've been in, I've not lost a single drop of blood! Not a single drop! That's proof of my invincible strength! That's why they call me ‘Iron Shield’ Pearl!" He grinned, his teeth actually pinging in the light. "And my iron defense is quite fashionable too!"</p><p>"You’re kind of a dandy, aren’t you?" Nami muttered as she looked her opponent over. Pearl rushed her with some considerable speed for a man wearing iron plates and Nami moved back a step to dodge his first swing. A simple pivot to her left and she’d moved completely out of the man’s charging line. Seeing an opening Nami swung her staff at the back of Pearl’s head. The man ducked forward and Nami’s swing only glanced off the top of the large iron plate on his back. With a backhand that Nami sensed coming Pearl swung around. Grimacing at missing his strike Pearl still laughed.</p><p>“Your little stick won’t do you any good here girly.” Pearl laughed while coming at Nami with a flurry of punches from his iron shields. Nami weaved around each blow looking for an opening. The moron’s armor was actually more of a hindrance than she was willing to admit, the fact that he had the stamina to keep up this rush of punches was also a problem. Sanji having seen Nami engaged with Pearl had tried to move to help her. Luffy’s hand on his shoulder kept the blonde from interfering. A simple shake of the head from Luffy, while staring hard into Sanji’s eyes, had the chef grimacing but looking back towards the ongoing fight.</p><p>Nami continued moving around Pearl’s attacks with her Observation. Slowly but surely she was starting to see the pattern of the man’s attacks. A few quick jabs at his face, which were always blocked as pearl raised both arms to protect his head, showed Nami all she needed to know. Pearl rushed forward again raining down punches which Nami began weaving between. When Pearl paused to reset himself, a part of the pattern she had noticed, Nami lashed out towards his face with a jab. Predictably Pearl’s reaction was to bring up the shields on both arms to block, but this time the thrust was only a feint. Nami spun a full three hundred sixty degrees and put all the strength and torque she could into her swing as she aimed for a place that wasn’t protected.</p><p>“Aaaahhhh!” Pearl screamed as he fell to the deck his foot hanging limply from his pulverized ankle. “My ankle! My ankle!” The man screamed over and over again as he tried to reach for his injury, but his own iron plates prevented him from bending enough to reach his ankle. “Danger! I’m in danger!” Pearl began freaking out and Nami rushed him again. Pearl screamed as he brought up a hasty uppercut that snapped Nami’s staff off at the end. Nami suddenly felt her Observation flair up and a sense of ‘danger’ appeared screaming through her mind. Pearl was bringing his hand shields together and Nami just knew she couldn’t let that happen. With her Observation running in overdrive she caught sight of the broken end of her staff still flipping through the air. Nami grabbed it without thinking and drove the jagged broken end straight into Pearl’s face. More specifically the orangette had driven the jagged piece of wood into the man’s eye and through it into his brain. Pearl’s shields clanged together just as Nami leaped back, small flames appeared on the two hand shields as Pearl slumped backwards onto the deck and stopped moving. Nami took a deep breath as she realized she won against the walking shield only for Sanji to suddenly blur past her and a resounding thud to come from behind.</p><p>“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Gin?” Sanji demanded of the scruffy man who had a tonfa with a large iron ball on one end aimed at Nami. Sanji’s foot had clashed with the tonfa before Gin’s strike could connect.</p><p>“I didn’t want it to come to this, Sanji.” Gin replied as the two separated from each other. “Why didn’t you all just leave? No one would have needed to get hurt!”</p><p>“So you say, but I doubt your Captain would’ve let anyone go.” Sanji replied and saw Gin grimace at the likelihood of that statement being true. “Besides, would you just give up your home to some asshole that showed up out of nowhere and demanded you to?”</p><p>“If it meant living, then yes.” Gin responded and Sanji scoffed.</p><p>“Then you really don’t have any conviction, do you Gin?” Sanji sighed before assuming his stance. “As my last act as Sous Chef of the Sea-Faring Restaurant Baratie. I’m throwing you out and banning you for life, Gin.” With his piece said Sanji dashed forward with a kick which Gin blocked with one tonfa. The ‘Man-Demon’ of the Krieg Pirates spun the tonfa in his other hand and swung the heavy iron ball at the blonde’s waist. Sanji hopped backwards avoiding the blow before coming in with a series of brutally fast kicks. Gin, to his credit, managed to block all of them while only being pushed back slightly. The two traded blows back and forth for a short time gauging each other’s speed and reaction time. With a grunt Gin upped his own speed, along with the speed of his spinning tonfa, and nailed Sanji in the abdomen sending the suit-wearing chef skidding back across the deck.</p><p>“I’m sorry it had to be this way, Sanji.” Gin stated as he rushed at the blonde to try and finish him off. Sanji’s sudden kick catching him in the side ended Gin’s attack and sent the Krieg Pirate tumbling across the deck.</p><p>“Then you should have stood up for what you believed was right.” Sanji grimaced at Gin. Sanji moved quickly rushing the tonfa wielder, Gin swung one tonfa but Sanji ducked below the strike and connected his heel with Gin’s chin in a picture perfect high kick. The Krieg pirate was lifted off his feet as his teeth cracked together in his mouth. Sanji didn’t let up and put all of his strength into a huge leap that saw him meet Gin in the air with a flying kick. The battle commander of the Krieg Pirates spat blood as Sanji’s foot collided with his stomach and folded the man over. Gin was sent careening off the deck and landed in the ocean dozens of meters away with a large splash. For a man without much conviction Gin never let go of his weapons. The battle commander of the Krieg Pirates at least died like a warrior, weapons in hand and fighting until his last breath.</p><p>“Get down here Krieg!” Luffy roared when he realized the other Captain still hadn’t shown himself even though his entire crew had been wiped out.</p><p>“I see now…” Krieg intoned darkly as he started making his way down the makeshift gangplank from his Galleon. “I didn’t only lack information, I lacked a strong crew!” He roared as he brandished one of the pauldrons from his broken armor. “Now you can all just die! I’ll take the ship and rebuild my crew after tossing your corpses into the sea! Lethal poison gas bomb! M! H! 5!” The man yelled as the shield opened in the center and fired a projectile towards the Baratie.</p><p>“No.” Luffy intoned holding up his right hand in the ‘gun’ position. A bright white-blue beam of focused electricity near instantly struck the chemical weapon. The canister was super-heated and disappeared within a second, taking its poisonous contents with it. All the cooks of Baratie, barring Zeff who’d met Devil Fruit users before, had their eyes wide open and their jaws on the floor. Krieg himself wasn’t fairing any better as from behind his gas mask everyone could see his bulging eyes. A little fact about lighting, a bolt reaches upwards of thirty thousand Kelvin, which is twenty nine thousand seven hundred twenty six degrees Celsius or fifty three thousand five hundred forty degrees Fahrenheit. No material on Earth can withstand direct focused heat of this level for more than a fraction of a second. The only exception to this rule was the power of the Gomu Gomu No Mi as the Devil Fruit was granted full immunity from electricity in any form. A prank of the Sea Devil himself, though not a single soul would ever know it.</p><p>“How…how?!” Krieg roared out as he tossed the, now useless, pauldron away. “What the hell are you?!”</p><p>“I ate the Goro Goro no Mi, I’m a Lightning Man.” Luffy responded with a frown. “Now fight for your Flag at least, since you let your crew die without raising a hand to help them.” He growled at the other pirate, disgusted by the man’s outright disregard for his subordinate’s lives.</p><p>“You little bastard! I’m Don Krieg! I’m the strongest pirate in East Blue! I have the most weapons! The most ambition! I only needed…” Krieg ranted but was cut off by Luffy.</p><p>“You’re not any of those things anymore.” Luffy remarked sharply and Krieg grit his teeth so hard they risked cracking. “Your armor full of tricks is broken, your crew is gone, your armada sank, and now you’re here ranting because it’s all you have left.”</p><p>“You fucking-” Krieg tried to retort but Luffy’s fist was suddenly warping his face and the large man was sent crashing into the deck.</p><p>“You’re the kind of pirate I hate.” Luffy informed the downed man. “Get up, get on your feet! At least face me like a real man!” Krieg roared as he leapt to his feet and threw a diamond studded punch from his gauntlet at Luffy. The Straw Hat Captain moved his head to the side, dodging the punch, before delivering one of his own to Krieg’s stomach. The large man stumbled backwards hacking and coughing as the air had been driven from him. Luffy sent a kick at the heaving man’s head and Krieg’s face met the deck. Luffy stood over the other pirate waiting for his next move.</p><p>“Mercy…please…” Krieg muttered as he tried to pick himself up off the deck. The large man was bleeding from his mouth and nose as he looked up at Luffy. “I’ll leave…I promise. I’ll never bother anyone again.”</p><p>“Are you really that much of a coward? You won’t even fight for your flag or the crewmates that died fighting for you?” Luffy questioned only for an uppercut to be heading for his face from a cruelly smiling Krieg.</p><p>“I’m Captain Don Krieg! No one is stronger than me!” Krieg roared as his uppercut was only a hair’s breadth from Luffy’s chin. His eyes widened in shock, fear, and pain when his fist stopped entirely. Luffy had grabbed the man’s gauntleted wrist and stopped the sucker punch cold. With a stone-faced expression Luffy tightened his grip on Krieg’s wrist, crushing the metal of the gauntlet and the man’s flesh and bones underneath. In panic Krieg lashed out with his other fist, but Luffy caught that one by the wrist as well.</p><p>“There’s no Captain without a crew.” Luffy intoned flatly his tone cold and factual. “And you let your crew die.” Krieg’s eyes widened as he struggled to pull his wrists free from Luffy’s steel-like grip. “You should do the right thing and join them.”</p><p>“No! Stop! Wait!” Krieg bellowed only for Luffy to let his Devil Fruit loose through his hands that were all but shackling Krieg’s wrists. “Aaaarrrggghh!” Krieg roared in agony as lightning coursed through his body, a bright blue-white glow coming from the once feared pirate. The man’s screams died off shortly and Luffy cut off his power. Before Luffy let Krieg go everyone on the Baratie saw what had become of the infamous ‘Pirate Admiral’ Don Krieg. The man was charred black, smoke rising from his body. Both of the man’s gauntlets had melted to his hands and he was clearly not breathing. Luffy dropped the man’s wrists and the body fell to the deck, still letting off wisps of smoke.</p><p>“It’s over.” Zoro stated sheathing all three of his swords. Usopp put his slingshot away, having pulled it out after his initial attack to fight any of the Krieg Crew that might have tried to rush for the Baratie doors. Sanji sighed with a grimace before taking out a cigarette and lighting it. The chef took a drag and exhaled before walking over towards Zeff who stood in the doorway of the restaurant. Nami walked over to Luffy and wrapped her arms around him. Luffy’s arms mimicked hers and wrapped around her waist. The two leaned in and shared a soft kiss for a few seconds before pulling back.</p><p>“We did it.” Nami smiled at her Captain/Lover.</p><p>“Yeah, he really pissed me off.” Luffy muttered looking over at Krieg’s body.</p><p>“Don’t worry about that asshole Luffy.” Nami shook her head. “Instead focus on the good that’s about to happen.” Luffy tilted his head slightly confused for a second only to notice Nami’s eyes suddenly looked like Beri Symbols again. “Now we get to raid the enemy’s ship for everything they have!”</p><p>“Shishishi!” Luffy laughed at his Navigator/Lover’s happy expression as he pulled her into a hug, which Nami happily snuggled into for a bit, before they released each other. “Sure thing, Nami.” With a wave to his crew Zoro, Usopp and Sanji gathered around to listen to their Captain. “Alright guys, we’ve won the fight so everything that is in the Galleon is ours now! Take everything of value and anything else that looks useful or interesting!”</p><p>“Don’t forget to bring it to me first!” Nami exclaimed her eyes shining. “I’ll have to check all of it and keep track of what we have in the holds!” The orangette was practically bouncing in excitement of how much they could take from Krieg’s Flagship.</p><p>“You know what to do, let’s go!” Luffy raised his arms up with his wide grin on his face. Usopp, Sanji and Zoro nodded and started making their way up the gangplank onto the Galleon. Luffy noticed Nami had stopped near Krieg’s body and walked over to her. “What’s up, Nami?”</p><p>“Just wondering how much these diamonds in his gauntlets are worth.” Nami remarked as she knelt down and looked the gems over. “Do you think you could get them out for me?” She asked her eyes in ‘puppy dog’ mode.</p><p>“Shishishi, sure thing Nami.” Luffy chuckled and Nami kissed his cheek in thanks. The orangette smiled as she stood up and made her way towards the Galleon, intent on stripping every Beri from the ship, while Luffy set to work removing the diamonds from Krieg’s melted gauntlets.</p><p>“Wait for me guys!” Nami called out to her crewmates as she made her way up the gangplank to start helping with the ‘appropriation’ of the Krieg Pirates’ valuables.</p><p>“Alright, come out of there you.” Luffy grinned as he tried to pry the diamonds from the melted metal. Not having much luck the straw-hatted man grimaced before the proverbial lightbulb turned on above his head. Luffy’s index finger glowed brightly as he turned it into lightning. Focusing the sparks and bolts into a point Luffy set about cutting the diamonds out of the metal. Several minutes later and Luffy had removed every diamond from the ruined gauntlets. He smiled while looking down at the gems he now held, knowing that they’d make Nami happy.</p><p>“Hey Luffy, if you’re done with that give us a hand would you?” Usopp asked as he was lugging a chest full of what looked like parts and wires down the gangplank. Zoro and Sanji had chests of their own over their shoulders as well but they were both closed. Luffy walked up to Zoro with the diamonds in hand.</p><p>“Is this chest treasure?” Luffy asked his First Mate. Zoro nodded before setting the chest down and opening it. Gold, silver, and gems met Luffy’s gaze and the Straw Hat Captain smiled as he added the diamonds he’d taken to the chest. “Carry on.” Zoro grunted as he hefted the chest back onto his shoulder and walked towards the Going Merry with it. Luffy walked up the gangplank onto the Galleon and set about helping his crew with taking everything of value and interest from their defeated enemies. Almost thirty minutes later as Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Usopp and Nami were on the Baratie’s deck, making notes of what they’d collected so far, Luffy suddenly seized up and whipped his head around so fast everyone thought he’d get whiplash from it.</p><p>“What is it, Luffy?” Nami questioned, having never seen her Captain looking genuinely panicked before. Sanji and Usopp looked around as well wondering if a Krieg pirate was still lurking somewhere.</p><p>“Who the hell is he?” Luffy asked as he locked his gaze on the small vessel that was approaching the Baratie. More specifically he was focused on the man sitting on a chair in said vessel. Luffy’s Observation was practically screaming warnings of this man’s strength into the young man’s head.</p><p>Zoro stared at the incoming man in shock. Well, both shock and excitement. His heart began beating furiously inside his chest. The ship sailing towards them could barely be called a ship. Honestly, it could barely be called a dinghy. It actually looked like a coffin. A rather large coffin, but a coffin all the same. On the edges were candles that seemed to burn with green fire, and the mast resembled an ornate cross. But that wasn't what Zoro paid attention to. No, the green-haired swordsman’s focus was solely on the man sitting with his legs crossed on the only seat on the coffin-like boat. It was a black-haired man, with piercing yellow eyes. He had a short beard, mustache, and sideburns, all of which were sharply trimmed to appear pointed. He wore no shirt, only an open, long black coat. It was red on the inside, with red sleeves and his collar decorated with flower patterns. His pants were a light purple, tucked into strapped boots. He had a large, wide-brimmed, plumed hat. A necklace hung around his neck, with a pendant shaped like a large cross adorning it. And on his back? On his back was a long, deadly looking black blade whose handle was simply a smaller, more ornate version of the cross that served as the mast for his ship.</p><p>"Who the heck is that?" Patty blinked owlishly. "And how did he sail all the way here in such a tiny boat?"</p><p>"Idiot." Zoro breathed out slowly. That was the least important question that could be asked right now.</p><p>"The better question is; what is he doing here?" Zeff replied staring at the man approaching his restaurant. "That man is a renowned swordsman…more renowned than any other in the world." Zeff stated seriously, some real worry seizing him. Depending on why the man was here, none of them may live past today.</p><p>"The Greatest Swordsman in the World." Zoro grinned sharply. "Dracule Mihawk!"</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Oh shit! Someone REALLY powerful just showed up! What will be the Straw Hat’s reaction to meeting the World’s Greatest Swordsman? On the positive side of things though, Krieg Pirates have been wiped out! Plus the Straw Hats are claiming their spoils! Krieg had a rather elaborate set of weapons and armor, Usopp has started taking all he can get already! Nami’s going to have a ‘money fit’ over everything they’re taking! Don’t think she’s forgotten those giant pearls that Pearl had on his shields either! Nothing of value escapes Nami’s notice! Also, how about that?! Nami took down Pearl! That’s two pirates with higher positions than cannon fodder she’s taken down since she joined up with Luffy!</strong>
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  <strong>What will these accumulating changes do in the future? Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Dracule Mihawk, Sailing for Cocoyashi</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! The World’s Greatest Swordsman appears! Zoro must challenge him! Will his increased skills impress the World’s Greatest? Setting sail for Cocoyashi!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 11 – Dracule Mihawk, Sailing for Cocoyashi</strong>
</p><p>As the small coffin-like boat sailed into the area between the Going Merry and the dilapidated Galleon the man sitting on the boat briefly glanced around. His sharp, hawk-like, eyes swept over everything in less than a second before he spoke.</p><p>“It seems my fun has ended before I caught up with it.” Mihawk commented blandly. “So it goes.” Everyone on the Baratie, the Straw Hats included, watched as the small boat docked at the fins and the man stood from his seat. A flick of his wrist and a prepared line was pulled taunt around a small mooring post at the edge of the fins. The World’s Greatest Swordsman then stepped onto the Baratie.</p><p>“Hawk Eyes, did you come to finish off the Krieg Pirates?” Zeff questioned and Mihawk looked over the retired Pirate.</p><p>“Indeed, Red Leg, though it seems they were foolish enough to pick a fight with another crew before I caught them.” Mihawk replied and Zeff felt a lot of the tension in his shoulders release. The man wasn’t here to kill them or anything at the very least.</p><p>“Would you like something to eat?” Zeff offered and Mihawk barely raised an eyebrow at the offer.</p><p>“Very well, bring me a menu and the wine list; I’ll take something ‘to go’.” Mihawk accepted and a cook nervously shuffled forward with the requested items a few moments later. The sharp eyes of the Greatest Swordsman glanced over the menu and then the wine list before he closed both and looked at Zeff. “The Filet Mignon, sauté the vegetables and I’ll trust you to pair it with an appropriate red wine, aged ten years at least.”</p><p>“Of course.” Zeff nodded. “I’ll prepare everything personally.” With that Zeff moved into the restaurant and back to the kitchen faster than most had ever seen him move.</p><p>“Dracule Mihawk?” Zoro asked as he walked closer and stood in front of the man.</p><p>“Do you need something, boy?” Mihawk questioned the green-haired young man.</p><p>“I set sail to meet you!” Zoro smirked as he rested his hand on Wado Ichimonji. Mihawk eyed him with a modicum of curiosity, noticing the two low quality swords next to the named sword that rested on his hip.</p><p>"And what is your reason for seeking me out?" Mihawk questioned, looking as though he’d heard this countless times before.</p><p>"To surpass you!" Zoro tied his bandana properly to his head. "You have some time to kill, right? Shall we duel?"</p><p>"Pitiful weakling." Mihawk spoke with a harsh sigh. "If you are a competent swordsman, then you know the difference between us without needing to cross blades." He eyed Zoro coolly. "Yet you still dare challenge me. Is it conviction or ignorance that fuels you?"</p><p>"Neither." Zoro answered as he placed Wado Ichimonji between his teeth and grasped his other two, nameless swords, in his hands. "My ambition fuels me, and my promise to my departed friend." He prepared himself, while Mihawk stood there with his arms crossed, looking unimpressed. "To be honest, I never imagined I would find you so soon."</p><p>"That is not to your favor." Mihawk remarked before he reached up and took off his necklace. “Since I have some time before my order is ready, I’ll give you a few moments of my time.” With a pull on the bottom of the cross he unsheathed a tiny kogatana that was hidden inside it.</p><p>"And just what are you planning on doing with that?" Zoro's eyes narrowed, seeing the lack of care Mihawk was showing.</p><p>"I am not the kind of brute that would hunt a rabbit with a cannon. Though you may be a swordsman of some renown, this is still the East Blue. Of the Four Seas divided by the Red Line and the Grand Line, this is easily the weakest of them all." Mihawk held the tiny knife in a ready grip. "I apologize though. Unfortunately, I have no blade smaller than this on me."</p><p>Zoro clenched his jaw, his eyes narrowed in anger, at seeing this disrespect. Did this man truly think he wasn’t even worth drawing a real…sword…against…? ‘Wait a minute.’ He thought as the rage fueled shaking of his body began to slow and then stop. ‘I don’t even draw all three of my swords against the upstart amateurs that have tried to fight me so they could boost their own reputations. This is the same thing, isn’t it?’</p><p>During his thinking Zoro didn’t notice Mihawk cock an eyebrow at seeing the green-haired swordsman calm himself down.</p><p>“I see,” Zoro breathed deeply before exhaling. “I have to prove I’m worth drawing your sword against.” He looked the World’s Greatest in the eye. “I get it; I’ve done the same myself.” Zoro took his stance properly and prepared his signature attack. With speed no other swordsman in East Blue could hope to match, Zoro closed the distance between them and attacked. “Oni-”</p><p>"Hear me, little frog in his well…you're but someone who has yet to experience the real world." Mihawk stated, not even flinching at Zoro's speed.</p><p>"Giri!" Zoro finished, his three blades aiming to slice Mihawk in three places. A metallic ringing was heard and jaws dropped as Mihawk's tiny knife impacted the technique in the exact place the three blades were crossed. Zoro's forward momentum was stopped dead, and no matter how much of his strength he put into his strike, he couldn't get the knife to budge even a centimeter. Mihawk's arm didn't waver in the slightest. The man didn’t even seem to have his full attention on the fight.</p><p>"Big Bro Zoro’s Oni Giri was stopped?! It's never failed before! Not even once!" Johnny and Yosaku were trembling and terrified at the strength displayed. Luffy, Nami, and Sanji watched on, while Usopp joined the rest of the Baratie cooks in gaping at the scene before them.</p><p>'I can't move…' Zoro realized as a bead of sweat dripped down from his temple to his chin. 'Not a single person has ever seen through this technique! Not one! Yet he stopped it with what amounts to a pocket knife?!' He stared at Mihawk's expressionless face, the man’s piercing eyes practically boring a hole into Zoro’s own. 'This is insane!' Zoro leapt back before attacking again, fast swings and combos from his three swords were all rendered meaningless. 'Am I truly so far from him?!' Mihawk's small knife parried every single strike easily, as if he was merely humoring the younger man. Finally, an actual push from Mihawk knocked Zoro backwards and onto the deck fins. 'Is there really this much difference between us?' Zoro wondered as he got up and reset himself. 'I’ve trained too hard to let him beat me with a pocket knife!' Memories of every fight with Kuina; every bit of training he did back home as a kid; inheriting Wado Ichimonji after she died. Even the continued harsh training with Luffy and the rest of his crew; all of these thoughts flashed through his mind as he clashed with Mihawk again.</p><p>"Such drive." Mihawk noted. The young man was doing passable swordsmanship at least. Most of the young amateurs that challenged him completely lost their cool when he drew his kogatana; but this young man had managed to calm himself even before his first strike.</p><p>“I couldn’t make my dream a reality without drive.” Zoro panted for a moment, before breathing deeply and readying another attack. Mihawk easily moved around the blade and readied a parry. His hand snapped forward faster than most could see and caught Zoro’s right sword with a deft swipe Zoro was sent crashing to the floor.</p><p>"What burdens you so, boy? What do you desire at the extent of your strength?" Mihawk questioned the downed young man.</p><p>“To defeat you and become the World’s Greatest Swordsman.” Zoro replied as he stood up again. “To become the best so that even those in the Heavens will know my name.” An image of his promise with Kuina appeared in his mind for a brief moment.</p><p>“Uh…Luffy, shouldn’t we do something? Zoro is getting tossed around over there.” Usopp whispered to his Captain only for Luffy to speak up without taking his eyes of the fight.</p><p>"This is Zoro's dream! This is why he set sail! No one has the right to take this from him!" Luffy stated even as a frown marred his face at seeing his nakama losing. Nami and Sanji both grit their teeth while watching the one-sided ‘duel’.</p><p>“Then you’ll need to do far better than what I’ve seen so far.” Mihawk remarked and was surprised when Zoro nodded in agreement.</p><p>“That I do. So let me give everything I have.” Zoro offered as he held his two nameless swords over his shoulders. His arms almost blurred as he slashed down, and two air blades flew towards Mihawk.</p><p>"Interesting, but not enough." Mihawk calmly stated. His small knife deftly moved into the path of the air blades and gracefully redirected them. They flew off to his right and left throwing up a spray of water when they hit the ocean behind him.</p><p>Zoro didn’t waste a second, already moving forward before Mihawk had even deflected his attack. Both of his swords were behind Wado Ichimonji, pointing towards the ground. "Tora!" He reached Mihawk just as the spray from the ocean began to descend. "Gari!" But Mihawk hadn't been distracted, even when he noticed the Armament Haki the green-haired swordsman was using.</p><p>"You are stronger than I expected. I never thought I would meet a swordsman in the East Blue capable of performing a ‘Flying Cut’. Even as rough as it is, that was far better than I would have expected from someone who has never stepped foot in the Grand Line." Mihawk commented as he stabbed forward, burying his knife into Zoro's ribcage. Blood immediately gushed from the wound, splashing on the deck. Some also started leaking from his mouth. The Straw Hats clenched their teeth and a few sparks escaped Luffy’s control. Tears welled in Nami's eyes as she watched her nakama get stabbed.</p><p>"Do you wish for me to pierce your heart? Why do you not retreat?" Mihawk questioned the younger swordsman. Though his kogatana was buried in Zoro's chest, the man refused to take a step back.</p><p>"Heh…hell if I know." Zoro was panting, his jaw clenched around Wado Ichimonji. "But I know…that if I take a single step back…I'd be losing something very important to me." Blood continued dribbling down his chin. "A promise or an oath…it would be irreversibly broken, and I could never stand here again."</p><p>"Yes…that is called defeat." Mihawk responded his infamous gaze locked with Zoro’s.</p><p>"Yeah…that's why I can't step back." Zoro chuckled painfully.</p><p>"Even if it would mean your death?" Mihawk asked, not breaking eye contact.</p><p>"Death would be better!" Zoro gruffly stated. "I could never live with myself if I shuffled away with my tail between my legs!"</p><p>'True conviction!' Mihawk realized as he stepped back, easily sliding his knife out of Zoro's chest and swinging it to remove all of the blood. The cross of his necklace was completed as he sheathed the kogatana. "Boy…tell me your name."</p><p>"Roronoa…Zoro!" Zoro moved his swords so that they were all at angles to each other. All of them pointed in different directions, sort of like a three-pointed star.</p><p>"I shall remember it…" Mihawk said as he reached behind his shoulder and pulled Yoru, widely regarded as the best sword in the world, from his back. "For your strength is not often seen in this world." He held the ornate, black blade in front of him. "And to pay my respect to your skill with your swords and your conviction, I shall end you with this sword."</p><p>'This is it.' Zoro thought calmly, almost in a meditative state. "I appreciate it." His thoughts were serene, the complete opposite of what was about to be a violent clash. 'The World's Greatest…or death!'</p><p>"Die!" For the first time in the entire duel, Mihawk actually attacked directly. He blurred forward at an astounding speed, as Zoro began spinning the two nameless swords in his hands. Mihawk's eyes widened while he gazed at the technique, already analyzing it and breaking it down, to instantly create a perfect counter.</p><p>"Santōryū Ōgi!" Zoro called out. "Sanzen Sekai!" The sounds of multiple slashes rang through the air as both men stood with their backs to each other, both of their strikes completed. For a brief moment, nothing happened, before Zoro's two nameless swords completely shattered. Blood splashed out of his chest as another cut opened up. 'I lost.' He acknowledged as he dropped the two useless handles and pulled Wado Ichimonji from his teeth, blood spilling even more from his mouth. 'This wasn't what I was expecting. So, this is what it means to be the strongest in the world?' He sheathed his treasured sword with a click, before turning around and presenting himself, arms held out wide with Wado Ichimonji held in his left hand.</p><p>"What's this?" Mihawk questioned the younger swordsman.</p><p>"A wound on one's back…" Zoro was grinning, even as blood dripped from the edge of his mouth. "Is a swordsman's shame."</p><p>"Splendid!" Mihawk exclaimed with a wide grin. He slashed down, splitting Zoro open from his left collarbone to his right hipbone. 'Don't rush to death, young one.' Mihawk thought, even as Zoro collapsed backwards onto the deck, his prized blade clenched tightly in his fist. 'It is not your time yet.'</p><p>"Zoro!" Luffy roared, while Nami stumbled backwards, both hands over her mouth in horror. Tears streamed from her eyes as she watched her nakama fall. The air suddenly felt charged as the smell of ozone became the only thing anyone could identify. Bolts were emerging from Luffy as the Captain glared furiously at Mihawk.</p><p>"Idiot!" Sanji yelled as he and Usopp rushed to their downed nakama’s side. A flash of white-blue light and Luffy vanished from where he’d stood a second ago.</p><p>"So, you're that young man's comrade?" Mihawk asked Luffy as he held back the sparking fist aimed at his head with one hand. "I thank you for not interfering in our duel. That took more willpower than most possess." He eyed the furious Luffy, who was already winding up for a more powerful punch with his other hand. "Fear not, your friend shall live." Luffy gasped, his powers dispersing as he lowered his arms. Luffy whirled around and watched as Nami, Usopp, Sanji, Johnny, and Yosaku were gathered around Zoro and applying first aid to his cuts, even as the green-haired swordsman coughed up some blood.</p><p>"Zoro!" Luffy yelled in joy, seeing Zoro alive and hearing Nami order Usopp to bring medicine and bandages from the Going Merry. "Zoro are you alright?!"</p><p>"Like hell he'd be alright you idiot!" Nami screamed back at her Captain; she would apologize later. "But he's still alive and I'm damn sure going to keep him that way!”</p><p>"It is much too soon for you to die." Mihawk yelled out. "My name is Dracule Mihawk! Learn about yourself! Learn about the world! Become strong, Roronoa Zoro!" He had his arms crossed as he looked over at the man lying on the deck. "No matter how many years pass, I shall stand at the top of the world and wait for you! Forge ahead with that fierce heart! Surpass my blade! Surpass Me, Roronoa Zoro!"</p><p>Just emerging from the Baratie, Zeff had caught Mihawk’s words and was staring at the proceedings with far greater understanding than any of the other cooks watching. "To think that Dracule Mihawk of all people would be heard saying words like that."</p><p>"Boy, what is your goal?" Mihawk questioned Luffy.</p><p>"To be the Pirate King!" Luffy faced off with him with the same conviction Zoro had shown.</p><p>"Then you're an even bigger fool than he is. That's a tougher path than his shall be." Mihawk grinned as he closed his eyes.</p><p>"I don't care." Luffy retorted. "I will be the Pirate King!" Mihawk actually grinned, both at Luffy's words and at what he was seeing in front of him. Zoro lifted Wado Ichimonji high in the air, pointing it to the sky.</p><p>"H-hey Luffy! C-can you hear me?" Zoro questioned from where he lay on the deck.</p><p>"You idiot!" Nami chided with tears falling down her cheeks. "Stop exerting yourself!" Zoro promptly ignored her and continued speaking.</p><p>"Sorry for worrying you… I know that if I don't become the World’s Greatest Swordsman, you'll be embarrassed." Zoro coughed out blood, clearing his airway. "I swear…that until the day I fight him and win…I'll never lose again!" Mihawk's grin widened further at this declaration. "Until the day I fight him and win, I'll never lose again!" Luffy’s wide grinned easily eclipsed Mihawk’s. "Any problems with that, Pirate King?!"</p><p>"Shishishi! Nope!" Luffy relaxed, grinning as he knew his nakama would be alright. Nami was also smiling tearfully, even as she told Zoro to ‘Shut up and rest.’ while Usopp, Johnny and Yosaku practically bawled. Sanji shook his head at the crazy crew he’d joined as he pulled out a cigarette to ease his nerves.</p><p>“Basic first aid should see him well enough.” Mihawk informed Luffy as Zeff walked over to them with Mihawk’s order, including a bottle of fine red wine. “That wound will scar, but it’s not as bad as it looks.” The World’s Greatest Swordsman informed the Straw Hat Captain.</p><p>“Thank you.” Luffy bowed to the older man. “You could have killed him; but instead you only made him more determined. You’re pretty awesome, Hawky!” Luffy emerged from his bow with a wide grin and a laugh. Mihawk’s eye twitched minutely at the nickname before he turned and accepted his food and wine from Zeff. A stack of Beri bills, undoubtedly far more than the meal cost, was placed in Zeff’s hands as Mihawk made his way back to the coffin-like boat he arrived in. The mooring line was quickly undone and his meal was set on the chair before, with what appeared to be a light kick, Mihawk shoved off and his small boat easily passed through ten meters of distance in a second.</p><p>“Roronoa Zoro.” Mihawk spoke loudly so everyone could hear him. Looking back and seeing the green-haired swordsman turned to face him from his prone position on the deck, Mihawk continued. “This is what a perfected ‘Flying Cut’ looks like.” With a motion that was too fast for anyone watching to comprehend Mihawk drew Yoru, swung it three times, and replaced it on his back. What everyone was able to see were the three large, greenish waves of displaced air that cleanly sliced through the Krieg Pirate’s Galleon. The Galleon appeared to be fine for a moment before it neatly separated into four pieces and collapsed into the ocean. The waves that emerged from the large wooden pieces slamming into the water covered Mihawk’s departure, and when everyone could see again the World’s Greatest Swordsman was nowhere to be seen.</p><p>“Good to know…” Zoro grinned before dozing off. Everyone else was still staring in shock, barring Luffy whose eyes were wide and filled with stars.</p><p>-Near the horizon line from the Baratie-</p><p>“Holy shit! Did you see that?” A Marine asked another as their small recon ship slowly drifted along. The ship was equipped with the best binoculars and telescopes the Navy could get, all for the purpose of gathering Intel on Pirates or other Persons of Interest. This also included long-range lenses for their Cameko Transponder Snail, enabling them to take pictures from far off without being spotted.</p><p>“No, I’m completely blind…yes I saw it you idiot!” A Marine Officer yelled back at his subordinate. “You better have gotten pictures! We’ll need all the information we can get on these ‘Straw Hat Pirates’!”</p><p>“Yes sir!” The Marine saluted.</p><p>“Damn it, I came back to my Home Sea to take it easy for the last few years before my retirement. I don’t need this shit!” The Marine Officer lamented as he held his head with his hands. Who knew the request from Lieutenant Fullbody to surveil the Baratie would lead to this? “I need a drink.” The old Marine Officer muttered as he headed for his small quarters on the recon ship.</p><p>-Two Days Later ~ The Going Merry-</p><p>After a heartfelt goodbye between Sanji and Zeff, the Straw Hat Pirates had left the Baratie early this morning. The course Nami had plotted to her home archipelago was the fastest there was. It took advantage of every current and the most common weather patterns of this part of the East Blue to propel the caravel towards their destination. Though it had only taken Johnny a day to figure out the direction they were headed in. This prompted both Bounty Hunters to panic and ask why they were headed for ‘Arlong Park’ of all places.</p><p>“Didn’t you say you wanted to go to the Grand Line?” Yosaku questioned the Straw-hatted Captain. “This is literally in the opposite direction!”</p><p>“Yeah Bro Luffy, the Pirate that rules over the Conomi Islands is terrifying!” Johnny tried to explain, but both were pretty much ignored by Luffy. The Captain was planning to get Sanji ‘to the starting line’ today since the Chef was now settled into his life onboard the Going Merry.</p><p>“Heeeeeyyy! Sanji! Come over here for a minute!” Luffy yelled and Nami, Zoro, and Usopp perked up. Well, as much as Usopp could perk up anyway. Since Zoro’s injury from Mihawk was preventing him from doing anything too strenuous he’d become Usopp’s personal coach while he couldn’t practice and train. This meant that poor Usopp now had Zoro sitting on his back while he did pushups. The only training Zoro was still capable of was meditating to help improve his Observation Haki. At least for a few more days, as the green-haired swordsman was already starting to insist that he felt fine.</p><p>“I’m coming, I’m coming…” Sanji replied as he walked down the stairs to the lower deck and stood in front of his Captain. “What’s up?”</p><p>“I need you to stay there and not pass out, ok?” Luffy asked and Sanji raised one of his curly eyebrows.</p><p>“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sanji asked only for Luffy’s normally cheerful face to suddenly become incredibly serious. In less than a second Sanji felt a force slam into his senses and his legs locked up. He felt heavy, his head hurt, were his ears ringing? Why couldn’t he look away from Luffy? His heart was beating too fast. He felt sweat running down his face and goosebumps covering his entire body. But just as quickly as the feeling came it also vanished as if had never been there. Sanji stumbled backwards, barely keeping himself standing, while staring at Luffy in shock. “What the hell was that?!” He demanded as he reached for his pack of cigarettes with a shaky hand.</p><p>“You did great, Sanji!” Luffy praised while Nami, Zoro, and Usopp looked on.</p><p>“Answer the question!” Sanji yelled at Luffy as he got a cigarette into his mouth and lit it. A drag was taken and Sanji exhaled slowly to steady himself.</p><p>“That was Conqueror’s Haki!” Luffy smiled widely and Sanji just gave him a look.</p><p>“The hell does that mean you shitty Captain! Explain!” Sanji demanded as he took another drag of his cigarette. Luffy spent the next little while explaining the concept of Haki to his newest nakama. After the explanation, and getting confirmation from Zoro, Usopp and Nami, though he only really cared about Nami’s opinion, Sanji accepted the truth of his new Captain’s explanation.</p><p>“So that’s how I run things on my ship.” Luffy finished explaining the training Sanji would be going through from now on. Sanji nodded his acceptance seeing as every member of the crew was doing it already. “So…is it lunch time yet?” He asked with a smile.</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, sure…why not.” Sanji sighed while shaking his head and making his way towards the kitchen to start cooking. He could use something familiar to help him process all of this.</p><p>“Bro Luffy!” Johnny exclaimed with crocodile tears running down his face. “You never told us why you’re going to ‘Arlong Park’! The Arlong Pirates are Fishmen! They’re super strong! The Captain of the Arlong Pirates makes Don Krieg look like a guppy in comparison!”</p><p>“Don’t you know how Arlong came to be in the East Blue?” Yosaku questioned. “He was released into the East Blue because of an agreement between the World Government and the Shichibukai ‘First Son of the Sea’ Jinbei!”</p><p>“What’s that got to do with Arlong?” Luffy questioned. He and his brothers had learned about the ‘Three Powers’ from Garp, Kuzan, and Shanks. Even he knew that just because someone was part of a strong crew, didn’t mean they were strong themselves. As Johnny and Yosaku tried to explain to Luffy why it was a bad idea to challenge Arlong, the straw-hatted young man barely paid attention. His focus was mostly on Nami, who was standing at the bow of the ship looking towards the horizon. She was determined to free her village and the entire Conomi Archipelago from Arlong. Luffy could only smile at the fire that had been growing inside of his Lover since they’d met. His attention was pulled back towards the Bounty Hunter Duo as they were finishing up their reasoning for not challenging Arlong.</p><p>“So you see, Bro Luffy, it’s really for the best that we steer clear of the Arlong Pirates.” Johnny finished with Yosaku nodding along. But both of them froze up when they saw the serious look on Luffy’s face.</p><p>“The Conomi Islands are Nami’s home.” Luffy started and both Bounty Hunters gaped at him. “Arlong has enslaved her people, her family, and even killed her mother. She wants me to kill him, so I’m going to, I’ve already promised. I’ve already said that I’m going to rip off Arlong’s left arm and I intend to do so.” He rumbled and both Bounty Hunters broke out into flop sweats. Soft arms gently encircling Luffy’s neck and pulling his head backwards to press into two very soft breasts ended the conversation. Nami sighed happily as she held Luffy’s head to her chest and laid her cheek on top of his hat.</p><p>“Thank you, Luffy.” Nami smiled and Luffy grinned.</p><p>“No problem, Nami, I already promised. Arlong dies as soon as possible after we get to your home.” Luffy assured her and was pulled deeper into the buxom orangette’s bosom for it.</p><p>“Lunch!” Sanji called out from the kitchen doorway.</p><p>“Yeah!” Luffy exclaimed happily as he gently removed Nami’s arms from around him and then swept the woman off her feet; literally, as he now had her in a ‘Princess Carry’ while he raced towards the kitchen for lunch. Nami giggled the whole way with her arms wrapped around his neck.</p><p>“It’s not fair!” Sanji sobbed as he beat on the edge of the cabin with his fist. “That stupid, shitty Captain! So lucky! It’s so unfair!” A large black cloud formed over Sanji’s head as he kept lamenting that Luffy and Nami were together. Zoro and Usopp both gave Sanji a wide berth as they made their way into the kitchen for lunch.</p><p>What none of them knew was that a certain Saw-nosed Shark Fishman was making his own plans at the same time they were all sitting down for lunch.</p><p>-Arlong Park-</p><p>"Nami's been gone a rather long time." Kuroobi, a Ray Fishman, mentioned to Arlong as they sat around the banquet table.</p><p>"She has." Arlong nodded in between bites of his food. "I'm not worried though. Little Nami knows better than to run away. She'll be back."</p><p>"She's approaching her longest time that she’s ever been away." Kuroobi restated. "She's a smart girl, for a pathetic human, at least. She was getting close, wasn't she?"</p><p>"She was." Arlong muttered thoughtfully.</p><p>"Maybe she's trying to get the last of it all in one trip, so she can try to surprise us and force the deal." Chew suggested.</p><p>"Shahahaha." Arlong started to laugh, as he recognized the truth in his officers’ words. "Yes, that would be something our little Nami would try, wouldn't it?" He turned to Kuroobi. "Call up Nezumi, tell him I have a tip on some ‘stolen money’ for him." His twisted laughter rang out through Arlong Park as Kuroobi went to fetch the Transponder Snail for him.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Well now, isn’t he just unknowingly digging his grave deeper? But Mihawk is still a beast, as if he would be anything else. The Marines have another Incident to add to the Straw Hats list of ‘crimes’. But this time they have photos and a clear shot of the Straw Hat Jolly Roger! Things are definitely heating up! Also, just a little teaser, expect a certain Big Brother to show up before Alabasta! Look forward to it!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Cocoyashi, Arlong Pirates vs Straw Hat Pirates</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! The Straw Hats make it to Cocoyashi! Arlong and his crew are in trouble~!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 12 – Cocoyashi, Arlong Pirates vs Straw Hats</strong>
</p><p>"Chichichi…I am Captain Nezumi of Marine Branch Sixteen." The Marine in question stood flanked by Marine sailors. All of the Marines had their arms crossed behind their backs. Nezumi was about average in height, maybe a little short, and was wearing a gray-blue, button-up long coat. The man’s facial features seemed to fit with the meaning of his name considering he had whiskers, and his coat had a hood with mouse ears on it. "I would like to speak to the one known as Genzo, from Cocoyashi."</p><p>"That'd be me." Genzo, the sheriff of the island, stepped towards the Marine Captain. Genzo was a heavily scarred man, almost all of which had come from Arlong, wearing a brown police uniform with short sleeves and a matching pair of shorts. His hat also matched his uniform, except for the pinwheel on a stick attached to it. "What can I help you with, Captain?"</p><p>"I would like to speak to a young woman called Nami. I believe she lives in this village, correct?" Nezumi questioned with a sleazy grin. Immediately, the townsfolk became suspicious and worried about the Marine’s presence.</p><p>"I'm afraid Nami isn't here. She's been gone for a couple of months on a trip; she probably won’t be back for several more days.” Genzo explained, his face betraying nothing.</p><p>"Chichichi…that is not a problem." Nezumi had seen the effect his words had on the townspeople and it almost made him chuckle. "Her sister will do. Nojiko, I believe she is called?"</p><p>"That's right." Genzo replied, suppressing his desire to grimace so as to remain polite.</p><p>"Then lead the way, Mr. Genzo." Nezumi watched as Genzo turned and started walking from the docks to the interior of the island. He followed along leisurely, looking over the village and noticing the distrustful looks from the people of Cocoyashi. The group came upon a small, normal looking, house. The only thing special about it was the fairly large grove of mikan trees behind it.</p><p>Genzo knocked on the door and a, rather beautiful, young woman opened it. She had light blue hair and dark blue eyes, as well as tattoos on her right arm. The ink swirled up and around her arm before crossing over her shoulder and forming a heart shape on her chest. She was currently wearing a plain white tank top and green pants.</p><p>"Genzo, what's going on?" Nojiko questioned while eyeing the Marines with suspicion.</p><p>"My name is Captain Nezumi." Nezumi stepped forward and introduced himself to her, while also eyeing her up and down appreciatively. His grin widened slightly as she grimaced at his leering. "I came to speak to your sister Nami, but as she is absent you'll have to do."</p><p>"What about, Captain?" Nojiko asked carefully, she had a bad feeling about this already.</p><p>"I'm afraid this will not be a pleasant conversation." Nezumi declared with a widening smirk. "We’ve recently received an anonymous tip about your sister's thieving."</p><p>"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about." Nojiko remarked, though both her posture and tone changed.</p><p>"Oh, but I think you do. Your sudden change in tone is very telling." Nezumi grinned. "You need not worry. No one here will be harmed. After all, your sister's targets were all Pirates. So they were merely criminals having stolen goods, stolen from them." His grin widened further as he continued. "As it stands we will not be laying any charges against her." He shrugged in a display of faux sheepishness. "But a thief is still a thief and a crime is still a crime. Do you see what I'm getting at?" He almost cackled at the look of growing terror in Nojiko's eyes. "It's only right for stolen goods to be collected by the government. That way, we can ensure that they are returned to their ‘rightful owners’."</p><p>"What did you say?" Nojiko grit her teeth, eyes widening in panic.</p><p>"I'm sure you heard me the first time. Chichichi! You will turn over everything your sister has stolen immediately!" Nezumi swept his hand in front of him. "Search the house!" He commanded his subordinates. One Marine moved forward, only to be met by a strong punch from Genzo. The Marine fell to the ground with groan of pain.</p><p>"What the hell do you think you’re doing?!" Genzo roared in rage. "Don't you bastards have something more important to do?! The Arlong Pirates are going around destroying villages and murdering people! Why aren't you doing anything about that?! The people here are slaves under his rule! Yet you ignore all that and focus on one petty thief?!"</p><p>"Chichichi!" Nezumi laughed in response. "A criminal shouldn’t be speaking so brazenly. You just assaulted a Marine. Be thankful I don't start placing charges against you as well." He sneered at the sheriff, before motioning towards the house. "What are you waiting for sailors? Ignore them and continue with the search!"</p><p>"The people of this island have been waiting for almost a decade for the Marines to help them!" Genzo yelled as he took a step forward, he’d beat all of these punks himself if he had to.</p><p>These mikan trees look suspicious Captain!" One of the Marines yelled to Nezumi.</p><p>"Well, dig them up then!" Nezumi yelled back, though he kept a wary eye on Genzo.</p><p>"Don’t touch them!" Genzo bellowed as he punched the Marine in the face. Nezumi really should have been keeping an eye on both Genzo and Nojiko. Seeing the threat to her mother’s mikan trees, along with the hiding place of Nami’s money, Nojiko had run inside and grabbed a pistol.</p><p>"Don’t you dare touch my Mother’s mikan trees with your filthy hands!" Nojiko screamed, her hands shaking in rage. "If you aren’t here to help us and get rid of Arlong, then you can get the hell out!" Nezumi stiffened, breaking into a small sweat. His truest nature easily revealed to be that of a coward. How the man made it to the rank of Captain was up for debate. The rest of the Marines, however, weren't as cowardly as their Captain. They all grabbed their rifles and aimed them at the two villagers. Seeing this Nezumi quickly regained his confidence, paper thin as it was.</p><p>"Chichichi. What's taking so long? We're not looking for a grain of rice here! How hard is it to find close to one hundred million Beri?" Nezumi questioned his men as Nojiko and Genzo were held at gunpoint.</p><p>“H-how do you know how much…?” Nojiko questioned before trailing off as realization struck her.</p><p>“That bastard…” Genzo growled as he realized who had sent Nezumi that ‘tip’.</p><p>“Did Arlong send you, you bastard?!” Nojiko yelled and Nezumi smirked wickedly.</p><p>“Chichichi…I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Nezumi replied as a Marine called out that he’d found it. “Well it seems we’ve found the stolen goods. We’ll be taking them with us.” Nojiko and Genzo could do nothing but watch as the Marines and Nezumi took every last Beri Nami had spent the last eight years collecting. Only after the rest of the Marines left di the two holding them at gunpoint follow.</p><p>“Damn it…damn it…damn it!” Genzo repeated as he ground his teeth so hard he risked cracking them. Nojiko sank to the ground as tears fell from her eyes, how could they possibly explain this to Nami?</p><p>-Going Merry-</p><p>“It’s finished, Nami.” Usopp grinned proudly as he held out Nami’s new staff. It was a three piece collapsible staff like her old one. Though this one was a bit thicker and had some ‘special’ additions inside the staff. It was tipped on both ends with a thick metal ‘cap’ and there was a switch on the middle section. This switch, once pressed, couldn’t be turned off without removing one of the two end sections of the staff. Detaching either end would make the button disengage and pop back up until it was pressed again. “I did some good work, if I do say so myself.” The Gunman bragged as he showed Nami the functions of her new staff. Krieg’s parts and components that they’d raided from the Galleon had been invaluable in helping Usopp finish Nami’s ‘shock staff’.</p><p>“It’s great, Usopp!” Nami cheered as she assembled the staff fluidly. “Just need to test the ‘shock’ part.” The orangette smiled as she pressed the button and then jabbed the nearby Johnny with one of the metal ends.</p><p>“Ow!” Johnny cried out as his body jerked and spasmed from the shock. Usopp chuckled at the Bounty Hunter’s misfortune.</p><p>“Other end.” Nami chirped with a smile and tapped Yosaku with the opposite end.</p><p>“Hey!” Yosaku yelped as he also spasmed and hit the deck from the shock.</p><p>“Seems to be working just fine!” Nami smiled happily as she detached one end and the current stopped flowing. She disassembled her new staff and placed it on the new belt/holster Usopp had made to go along with it. “Great work, Usopp!” Nami praised and the long-nose puffed up at the thanks.</p><p>“No problem, Nami! Never underestimate the capabilities of the Great Usopp!” Usopp laughed heartily and Nami fondly rolled her eyes at her nakama’s antics. “Though if we can get a few more parts together and I have enough time I think I might be able to make something even stronger.”</p><p>“Stronger?” Nami questioned her head tilted slightly.</p><p>“It’s only in the planning stages right now, but I’m trying to work it out.” Usopp waved it off. “Once I get it closer to figured out I’ll tell you about it.” Nami nodded and headed off to practice with her new staff, she needed to get used to the weight difference between her old staff and the shock staff. They’d be making landfall on her home island tomorrow a bit after lunch. She was going to make sure she was ready by then.</p><p>“Gah!” Sanji choked as he took a punch from Luffy and rolled across the deck. His new Captain was; apparently, very serious about his crew’s training and it was Sanji’s turn to spar with him. The only problem being that Sanji had only just barely gotten a grasp on the most basic utilization of Haki. Luffy however was near enough a master and none of Sanji’s kicks landed if Luffy didn’t want them to. The fact that Luffy also hit harder than anything Sanji had ever experienced before made the sparring that much worse.</p><p>“Giving up, Sanji?” Luffy grinned at his Chef.</p><p>“Like hell, shitty Captain!” Sanji replied before launching himself back at Luffy with a kick. This was how their sparring had gone every day since Sanji had joined the crew. Meditation to help improve Observation, and sparring to help with Armament, all while Luffy put them through exercise drills that almost made them all collapse afterward. Sanji wouldn’t complain though, he already felt a bit stronger than when he’d left the Baratie, so all the training was working. He’d be damned if he was left behind by the rest of the crew!</p><p>-Cocoyashi ~ Next Afternoon-</p><p>“We’ll dock just a bit away from what used to be Gosa Village.” Nami informed her nakama as she showed them a map of her home island. It was a map that she herself had drawn from memory, it wasn’t her best cartography work, but most shops would still sell it because of how accurate it actually was.</p><p>“Used to be?” Usopp asked curiously.</p><p>“Shortly before I started this trip, someone in Gosa Village wasn’t able to pay Arlong.” Nami growled her face showing her displeasure at the memory. “Arlong flipped out and destroyed the village. Just to prove he could, or maybe he just felt like it, the bastard literally flipped every building in the village upside down one-by-one. No one lives there anymore so it isn’t patrolled much by Arlong’s crew.”</p><p>“Seems like an over-reaction to me.” Sanji stated before he exhaled the smoke form his cigarette. “This shitty bastard is going down.” Nami grinned at the Chef’s declaration and nodded.</p><p>“Damn right he is!” Nami exclaimed her eyes shining with a vengeful light. “Anyway, from Gosa will make a quick stop by my and my sister’s house. I want Nojiko to see this, to see Arlong and all his crew taken down, she deserves it just as much as I do.”</p><p>“Is there anyone on the enemy’s crew we need to spare?” Zoro questioned, the Swordsman had finally healed up from Mihawk’s slash. True to the Greatest Swordsman’s word, the cut had scarred but it had sealed easily and healed quickly. It was truly a testament to Mihawk’s skill that such a large blade like Yoru could give such a clean wound. Almost any other swordsman in the world would end up cleaving their opponents in half with such a large sword.</p><p>“Just one.” Nami admitted with a sigh. “His name’s Hachi; he’s an Octopus Fishman with white hair. He’s just a guy that’s fallen in with a bad crowd. He’s too scared of Arlong to directly go against him, but I’ve literally watched him give money to people who otherwise wouldn’t have been able to afford Arlong’s ‘tax’ that month. He’s also a swordsman, so if you fight him Zoro leave him alive, he’ll swim away once Arlong is taken care of. That much I’m certain of.”</p><p>“Got it.” Zoro nodded as he took a swig from a bottle of booze. This would be his first time crossing blades with a Fishman Swordsman, should be interesting.</p><p>The Straw Hats docked not to long after their ‘strategy meeting’. Walking through the destroyed Gosa Village had made Usopp almost revert to his pitiful form that would be spouting about one fake disease or another. He quickly snapped himself out of it though. He was a real Pirate now! This wasn’t some game! He would be a Brave Warrior of the Sea! He’d make Kaya proud and regale her with all of his adventures when he eventually returned to Syrup Village! The crew arrived to Nami’s home and instantly noticed that Nami stiffened up.</p><p>“What’s wrong Nami?” Luffy asked able to both see and sense her sudden unease.</p><p>“My mother’s mikan grove, it’s damaged.” Nami explained shakily, before anyone could respond Nami had bolted for the house and almost torn the door from its hinges. “Nojiko?! Are you here?! Nojiko!” The rest of the Straw Hats quickly made their way towards the house to try and help Nami. Though when they entered the house Nami was sitting next to a despondent bluenette woman and holding her tightly.</p><p>“I’m sorry, Nami, I’m so sorry.” The woman muttered to Nami as she was held.</p><p>“I thought Arlong had done something to you when I saw the grove.” Nami told her sister as she held her.</p><p>“Nami, it’s all gone.” Nojiko stated and Nami looked at her sister curiously.</p><p>“What’s gone, Nojiko?” Nami questioned and Nojiko vaguely motioned towards the grove. “Arlong sent some Marine Captain that he’s paid off to come steal your money. All the money you saved up for the last eight years, Nami…it’s all gone.” Nami sat stonily for a moment before tightening her hug on her sister.</p><p>“It’s ok, Nojiko, its ok.” Nami assured her older sister. “I don’t need to save money for that bastard anymore.”</p><p>“Nami?” Nojiko questioned her little sister before finally noticing the other people in their house. “Who are you?”</p><p>“They’re my Crew, Nojiko, my nakama.” Nami informed her as she started introducing the Straw Hats. It wasn’t until she got to Luffy that Nojiko’s eyes widened to epic proportions.</p><p>“Wait…what? C-can you…run that by me again?” Nojiko asked Nami to repeat her introduction of her Captain.</p><p>“This is my Captain, Monkey D. Luffy, he’s also my Lover and soon he’ll be Arlong’s Executioner.” Nami introduced Luffy to her sister again; the orangette’s arms already around Luffy’s neck and her head resting against his chest.</p><p>“Lo…Lover?!” Nojiko stuttered out as Nami grinned and nodded while Luffy smiled widely.</p><p>“We’re going to destroy Arlong Park, Nojiko.” Nami informed her sister. “Gather up the villagers for me, everyone deserves to see this.” Nojiko could only nod, still in shock at the revelation that her little sister had not only joined a Pirate Crew, but had found a Lover! Said Lover that Nami seemed one hundred percent certain could and would kill Arlong. The Straw Hats left the house and headed for Arlong Park. A few minutes later and Nojiko rushed out of the house to alert Genzo and get the villagers together.</p><p>“This place really stands out.” Luffy commented as the Straw Hats stood outside the gate of Arlong Park. The villagers of Cocoyashi were starting to gather already and Nami smiled at seeing Nojiko and Genzo among them.</p><p>“We might as well get started.” Zoro stated as he fastened Johnny’s and Yosaku’s swords to his waist. The Bounty Hunter Duo’s Dao swords weren’t what Zoro was familiar with, but he’d make due. ‘First thing I’m doing when we get to a good sized town or city is replacing my destroyed swords.’ He thought to himself as he tied his bandana onto his head.</p><p>“I’m ready.” Usopp acknowledged as he pulled out two of his four revolvers. His lever action Repeating Rifle across his back and his trick slingshot in the bag at his side.</p><p>“I’ll knock.” Luffy stated his face turning serious as his memories of Nami telling him what the bastard behind this gate had done to her resurfaced. He raised his foot and then kicked forward in a picture perfect front kick. The gates of Arlong Park were torn from the wall and sent flying into the compound. Two Fishmen were brained by the steel doors and left lying on the ground, possibly dead from the impact.</p><p>“What the hell?!” Yelled a Fishman startled by the sudden attack.</p><p>“What’s going on?!” Another cried out after seeing his crewmates smashed by the doors.</p><p>“So you’re Arlong, right?” Luffy asked as he locked eyes with the saw-nosed Fishman lounging on a throne-like chair.</p><p>“I am.” Arlong confirmed as he glared at the human. “Who the hell are you?”</p><p>“I’m Luffy, a Pirate.” Luffy replied as he stalked closer towards Arlong.</p><p>“Why are you here, you worthless human?” Arlong demanded as two of his subordinates got in Luffy’s way to try and stop him. A gunshot went off and both of the large Fishman dropped to the ground with a hole between their eyes. It took almost everyone there, barring the Straw Hats, to realize that while they’d only heard a single shot, Usopp had actually fired twice.</p><p>“To kill you.” Luffy intoned darkly as he was suddenly next to Arlong and the Fishman’s face was warping around Luffy’s fist. Arlong flew from his chair and slammed into the wall surrounding Arlong Park.</p><p>“Boss!” The Arlong Pirates cried out only to be set upon by the rest of the Straw Hat crew. The Octopus Fishman that Nami had told the crew about trumpeted for a moment while saying something about a monster. From the sea a massive animal rose up and revealed itself to be a cow-like Sea King.</p><p>“Momoo! Get rid of these intruders!” Hachi yelled and the Sea King roared as it moved further into the compound. Luffy turned his gaze onto the Sea King and Momoo stopped dead in his tracks. The look from Luffy screamed a primal warning into the Sea King’s mind. Momoo began to tremble as he, somehow, broke into a flop sweat and began to slowly back up.</p><p>“Get lost.” Luffy said at a normal volume, but literally everyone there heard it clearly. Momoo cried out before quickly turning and diving back into the sea in terror. All of the Fishman, as well as the villagers of Cocoyashi, could only watch in shock as the straw-hatted teen sent a Sea King running with just a look.</p><p>“Momoo?” Hachi questioned as the Sea King had already disappeared from sight.</p><p>“Now…where were we?” Luffy asked as Arlong pulled himself out of the wall and glared viciously at Luffy.</p><p>-Zoro vs Hachi-</p><p>“Hey, Octopus, I heard you’re a Swordsman.” Zoro called out to Hachi.</p><p>“Huh? Oh, yes…yes I am!” Hachi replied after a moment to process.</p><p>“How about we see who the better Swordsman is?” Zoro challenged as he pulled out the two Daos and Wado.</p><p>“You’ll regret this human!” Hachi shouted as he pulled out six large swords and held them at the ready. Zoro was already gazing over Hachi’s form and picking it apart for openings.</p><p>“I’m doubtful of that.” Zoro replied having already spotted two ‘weak points’ in the Fishman’s stance. Maybe Hachi thought he could compensate with his multiple arms, but Zoro would make quick work of the Octopus if his form was anything to go by.</p><p>“I’ll show you!” Hachi bellowed. “Let’s see you take on my Six Sword Waltz!” Hachi moved in swinging all six of his blades and Zoro simply side-stepped to the right. A quick movement and Hachi dropped two of his left-hand swords as painful cuts opened up on two of his left arms. “Ow!” He cried out at the pain as he moved back to gain distance.</p><p>“These are pretty heavy.” Zoro mentioned as he hefted one of Hachi’s swords up with his left hand.</p><p>“They weigh three hundred kilograms each.” Hachi informed him and Zoro nodded before tossing the sword he was holding back to Hachi, quickly followed by the second sword.</p><p>“What?” Hachi questioned as he looked at his returned swords.</p><p>“This is a fight between Swordsmen; it would dishonor me to not defeat you at your best.” Zoro stated and Hachi nodded in understanding.</p><p>“Very well, then you’ll see the strength of the second strongest Fishman Swordsman on Fishman Island!” Hachi picked up his swords and attacked Zoro again. “Octopus Pot Stance!” He called as he placed the tips of all six of his swords together and attempted to spear Zoro. The green-haired swordsman used all three of his swords to block but didn’t expect the next move. “New Year’s – Open – Body Slam!” The six swords moved away from each other and broke Zoro’s guard. Hachi then used his flexible limbs to instantly flip his swords around and bring all six blades down on Zoro form different directions. Zoro blocked three of the swords and then leapt backwards to dodge the other three.</p><p>“Didn’t expect that.” Zoro remarked before he exhaled and sank into his Observation. “You make good use of your Fishman physiology.”</p><p>“Oh, thank you!” Hachi smiled as he readied his swords. “Hey! Wait a minute! Don’t try and confuse me with compliments!” Zoro shook his head at the easily distracted Fishman.</p><p>“If that’s all you have then I’m ending this.” Zoro informed as he readied his blades.</p><p>“You won’t beat my technique!” Hachi exclaimed as he retook his stance. “Octopus Pot Stance!” Once again Hachi rushed forward to spear Zoro. The green-haired Swordsman blocked the strike and let his swords move back when Hachi performed his next attack. “New Year’s – Open – Body Slam!” This time though Zoro hadn’t resisted the attack and simply pulled his swords back. He saw the direction all of Hachi’s swords were moving in and slipped between the blades.</p><p>“Tora Gari!” Zoro intoned and Hachi’s chest erupted in blood as three lacerations tore into him.</p><p>“Argh!” Hachi yelled at the pain and the sight of his blood flying. He hit the ground hard and gazed at the sky for only a second before everything went dark.</p><p>“He’ll live.” Zoro nodded to himself having felt the difference between human skin and the Octopus Fishman’s skin when he’d cut him. Those slashes had only hit the equivalent of a layer of fat on a human body. The shock of the pain and the force of the blow had been what knocked Hachi unconscious. “So that’s what crossing blades with a Fishman is like, not bad.”</p><p>-Nami vs Fishmen-</p><p>“Nami you traitor!” Yelled one of Arlong’s grunts.</p><p>“We’ll kill you!” Another roared out as he hefted a club.</p><p>“I doubt that.” Nami grinned viciously at them before assembling her shock staff. She dropped into her Observation and moved before any of the grunts could attack. The first grunt got the end of her staff in his face and screamed from both the impact and the electricity flowing into his head. He collapsed and didn’t move again. Nami didn’t slow down; her next swing caught one of the dumbfounded grunts in the side of the head and sent him into a spasming mess on the ground.</p><p>“Get her!” A Fishman yelled as he tried to rush the orangette. His bravery was rewarded by a thrust to the stomach and a painful shock to his body that rendered him immobile. Three more received the same as Nami weaved in and out of their strikes and cracked them across the head, body or one of their limbs. The constant electric shocks disrupted any attempts to counter and only led to further pain.</p><p>Interesting fact, Fishman are just as susceptible to electricity as humans. Very few of the myriad of Fishmen types had any resistance to electricity, most being just as good of a conductor as humans. Unfortunately for Arlong and his grunts, not a single one of them was one of these types. So they all suffered under the electric current produced from Nami’s shock staff.</p><p>“Damn it!” A grunt yelled as he swung at Nami’s head with a sword. Nami barely moved to avoid the swing before jabbing her staff forward into his throat. There was no screaming as the Fishman’s throat collapsed and the current travelled through his neck into his spine and from there to his brain. Nami continued to move like a woman possessed striking every grunt around her. Not a single one of them could touch her, all of them being bulky, musclebound Fishman that lacked the speed or reach to catch the far more agile Nami. One grunt after another fell and Nami showed no signs of stopping. Years of pain, rage, and hatred for these Fishmen had built up and until she’d taken as much revenge as she could she wouldn’t stop. By the time sixteen Fishman had fallen Nami was only starting to breath hard. The charging form of Kuroobi approaching her made her level her staff forward and prepare to fight the Fishman Karate user. She needn’t have worried as a black blur intercepted the Ray Fishman and stopped his charge with a dress shoe smashing into the side of his head.</p><p>“Thanks, Sanji.” Nami grinned and Sanji’s eyes turned to hearts as he turned to her.</p><p>“Anything for you Nami-swan!” Sanji waved to her.</p><p>-Sanji vs Kuroobi-</p><p>“Who the hell are you human?” Kuroobi demanded as he held his jaw. He wouldn’t admit it but that kick had not only caught him unaware but caused him significant pain.</p><p>“Sanji, the nakama of the woman you were trying to attack.” Sanji introduced himself as he tapped the toe of his shoe on the ground.</p><p>“So Nami’s conned you into trying to save her home, huh?” Kuroobi sneered and Sanji narrowed his eyes.</p><p>“I’ve heard what you shitty bastards have been doing on this island. What you’ve done to Nami and her sister. It makes my blood boil.” Sanji ground out as he stepped closer to Kuroobi.</p><p>“What’s a pathetic human like you going to do about it?” Kuroobi demanded. “I’m a level forty practitioner of Fishman Karate! I’ll kill you in one blow!”</p><p>“A fish has no place trying to back talk a Chef.” Sanji retorted as the two squared up. “I’ll deal with you for what you’ve done to Nami-swan.”</p><p>“Die you trash! Hyakumaigawara Seiken!” Kuroobi rushed forward and threw a powerful punch. Sanji met the punch with a kick and the two attacks sent a gust of wind from the collision. “Impossible!” Kuroobi exclaimed at seeing his attack stalemated against a human. The two broke off and back away before retaking their respective stances.</p><p>“Was that it? The old geezer hit harder than that!” Sanji scoffed at the bigoted Fishman. “I’d be surprised if you could kill Patty or Carne with such weak attacks!”</p><p>-Baratie-</p><p>“What the hell did you just say, Sanji?!” Patty suddenly roared out from his cooking station.</p><p>“You wanna fight you blonde prick?!” Carne yelled almost simultaneously from his station on the other side of the kitchen.</p><p>“Uh…you two do know that Sanji’s been gone for just over a week now, right?” A different Chef asked the two as both shook their heads for a second.</p><p>“That punk is talking shit about me, I know it!” Patty responded with a growl.</p><p>“I feel him running his mouth!” Carne spoke up with a grumble.</p><p>“Sure…” The Chef in the middle of the kitchen nodded while looking at both of them oddly.</p><p>-Arlong Park-</p><p>“So you’re a bit stronger than a regular human.” Kuroobi tsked at Sanji. “It’s no matter though, you may be able to match my Hyakumaigawara Seiken, but my Senmaigawara Seiken will kill you without fail!”</p><p>“Try it, fish.” Sanji taunted and Kuroobi rushed him with his arm cocked back.</p><p>“Senmai-!” Kuroobi started only for his stomach to be caved in by Sanji’s foot. All the air in Kuroobi’s lungs was forcefully expelled along with a mixture of bile and blood.</p><p>“Legs are longer than arms in most cases.” Sanji stated as he raised his leg high and brought all his power down in an axe kick to Kuroobi’s injured form. The heel of Sanji’s shoe slammed into the Ray Fishman’s head with the force of a Warhammer and the Fishman’s head was buried into the concrete under them. The blonde stepped back and was actually surprised to see Kuroobi forcing himself to his feet.</p><p>“You…damn…pa-pathetic…human!” Kuroobi panted as he couldn’t focus his sight. Everything was blurry and he could barely keep his balance. “I…I…w-will not…be…de-defeated.”</p><p>“Tougher than you look.” Sanji admitted before leaping forward with all the power of his legs. The concrete he stood on cracked from the force as Sanji rocketed forward. “Mutton Shot!” The blonde cried out as his right foot slammed into Kuroobi’s chest. Sanji distinctly felt the Ray Fishman’s sternum break under his foot and the sight of his chest caving in just confirmed that this would be the final blow of their fight. “Done now?” Sanji asked as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it.</p><p>-Usopp vs Chew-</p><p>“Damn it, Hachi! I’ll have to clean up your mess!” A blue Fishman with extended lips yelled at the downed Octopus Fishman. “Prepare to die human!” He inhaled before spitting out a ‘bullet’ of water at Zoro. The Swordsman jerked out of the way with his Observation before turning his gaze onto the Fishman.</p><p>“Hey you damn fish!” Usopp yelled as he fired a round at the blonde Fishman. Chew took the shot into his shoulder and cried out in pain and anger.</p><p>“You little shit!” Chew yelled at Usopp. “You want to die first? Fine by me!” Chew fired off another water bullet but Usopp was already moving and firing. Chew moved along with him dodging a few rounds but getting grazed by the rest. “Hold still you weakling!”</p><p>“Like hell!” Usopp yelled as he dodged another water bullet before returning fire. Chew grunted as he took another shot to his left arm. It was only thanks to his Fishman physiology that he was able to take so many shots with relatively little damage.</p><p>“Then I’ll just kill you with my most powerful attack!” Chew yelled as he ran towards the pool that connected to the ocean.</p><p>“Not if I use mine first!” Usopp retorted before firing off a round from each of the pistols he held. He then tossed them both into the air, then drew and fired his other two untouched pistols. The rapid fire juggling packed less punch this time around as Usopp had already used three rounds from each of his first two pistols. But eighteen rounds still lodged themselves into Chew’s body. Holstering all four pistols Usopp was surprised, and a little scared, to see Chew still on his feet.</p><p>“You damn…human…bastard.” Chew growled out as he lowered his arms, which had taken most of the shots. “I’m…going to…kill you.” He panted out.</p><p>“Exploding Star!” Usopp called out as he had already pulled his trick slingshot and let loose one of his Special Stars. The ball hit the injured Fishman in the chest and exploded.</p><p>“Damn you!” Chew roared out as he charged out of the smoke with his arms hanging limply by his side.</p><p>“Triple Exploding Star!” Usopp yelled as he let loose a salvo of his Special Stars into the charging Fishman. Each explosion was followed by a roar of pain as Chew tried to force himself through the attacks. The injured Fishman stumbled out of the cloud of smoke and shakily walked towards Usopp.</p><p>“I’ll…kill…” Chew tried to speak as he collapsed onto the ground. The blonde Fishman forced his head up as he tried to fire off a water bullet to kill the Gunman. Unfortunately for him all he saw when he looked up was the barrel of Usopp’s Repeating Rifle. A final shot rang out and Chew was no more, Usopp even breathing heavily still smiled towards Zoro as the Swordsman approached.</p><p>“Good work, Usopp.” Zoro acknowledged with a nod.</p><p>“Even I can win, against these guys.” Usopp breathed deeply as his body was slowly coming off the adrenaline high.</p><p>“Just have to wait for Luffy to deal with Arlong now.” Zoro looked over where Luffy and Arlong were glaring death at one another.</p><p>“This is going to be horribly brutal.” Usopp commented and Zoro grunted in agreement.</p><p>“I’m looking forward to it.” Nami spoke up as she walked towards them, her eyes never leaving Luffy. Looking behind her Usopp went bug-eyed at the number of bodies laid out all over the ground. There had to be at least twenty five Fishman either dead or unconscious where Nami had been fighting.</p><p>“Did you see my fight, Nami-swan?” Sanji asked as he walked over, hearts for eyes.</p><p>“Yeah, great job, Sanji.” Nami congratulated him distractedly. She didn’t want to miss a second of Luffy beating Arlong to death. Finally her and her home’s nightmare would be over.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Well now it’s down to the Captains! The extra training and Haki has helped out the Straw Hats immensely! Apparently Chefs at the Baratie can tell when they insult each other, even when they’re far away from each other, who knew? Hachi’s unconscious, Kuroobi’s dead with his insides crushed, Chew’s dead and riddled with bullets and burns, the grunts are unconscious or dead as well. Luffy has made Arlong watch as his entire crew was decimated by ‘pathetic humans’. Now it’s time for the shark to be dealt with. Next chapter is going to be brutal.</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Captain Luffy's Brutality</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! Luffy vs. Arlong! Time to pay for your actions Mr. Shark! Luffy is NOT happy!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 13 – Captain Luffy’s Brutality</strong>
</p><p>“You filthy, inferior human!” Arlong growled having watched his crew get wiped out by this pathetic human trash. “I’ll kill you for this!”</p><p>“Where’s you sword?” Luffy questioned the Saw-Shark Fishman.</p><p>“What?” Arlong spat back, his eyes almost bloodshot in his rage.</p><p>“Your sword, Nami told me you had one, get it, now.” Luffy demanded of the other Captain.</p><p>“Why?” Arlong questioned his eyes a mixture of confusion and unforgiving rage.</p><p>“Because I’m going to kill you; and when I do I want you to be at your best. No excuses.” Luffy stated making Arlong growl in anger.</p><p>“If you want to die so badly, then I’ll oblige you!” Arlong roared as he jumped backwards landing on the roof of the first level of Arlong Park. Another leap saw him at the second story roof. With a grunt Arlong punched through the wall and then tore it apart as he withdrew his massive sword. Leaping downward, sword raised to slice Luffy in two, Arlong laughed. “Die you damn human!”</p><p>No one watching expected what happened next; though Zoro and Nami were starting to get used to the crazy shit their Captain pulled off. Luffy simply reached up and caught the massive sword on the downswing. The large triangular blades of the sword not even cutting into his hand. Luffy looked unamused by Arlong’s attempted ‘sneak’ attack and held the sword firmly in his grip.</p><p>“Is that it?” Luffy questioned flatly. “Is that the strongest swing you can manage?”</p><p>“Not even close!” Arlong spat out, his anger doing well to cover his shock.</p><p>“Good, I want your best.” Luffy responded, his own anger starting to seep into his voice. “Not what you think will work. Not half your strength. All of it! Everything you have, swing like your life depends on it!”</p><p>“Shut your damn mouth, human trash!” Arlong roared his eyes going feral as he wound up for a massive horizontal swing. “Gragh!” Arlong roared, almost like a Sea King, as he swung the odd sword as hard as he could. Every bit of the Fishman’s strength was behind this swing and he knew that he was going to slice this worthless human in half!</p><p>A loud snap rang out through Arlong Park and ended Arlong’s thoughts of an easy victory. Staring in shock, along with all of the residents of Cocoyashi, Arlong could barely comprehend what he was seeing. The Straw-hatted Pirate was holding the top half of Kiribachi in his left hand while Arlong held the remainder in both of his.</p><p>“Your sword broke.” Luffy needlessly informed the Fishman. The Straw Hat Captain looked at the part of the broken sword he was holding, before tossing it aside like garbage. “No wonder you came to East Blue; you’re not that strong by comparison to your old crew, are you?”</p><p>“Die!” Arlong yelled as he threw the remainder of Kiribachi at Luffy like a buzz saw. Most wouldn’t be able to tell, but Luffy had definitely struck a nerve with Arlong.</p><p>“No.” Luffy denied as he snatched the spinning sword, broken as it was, out of the air by the handle. He then slammed the sword down and buried the topmost blade into the concrete below. The broken Kiribachi was now stuck into the ground as Luffy took a step forward towards Arlong.</p><p>“What the hell are you?” Arlong demanded his rage peaking.</p><p>“I’m a Pirate.” Luffy replied before his face contorted into a scowl and murderous rage shown ignited in his eyes. “And you made MY Nami cry!” Arlong barley saw the punch coming before his face was being indented by Luffy’s fist. The Fishman Captain was sent smashing through the walls of Arlong Park and Luffy quickly followed after him.</p><p>Arlong had barely gotten back on his feet before Luffy’s sandal-clad foot slammed into his stomach. The Saw-Shark Fishman was sent through another wall and tumbled across the floor. Before the room had stopped spinning in Arlong’s vision Luffy’s foot had stomped down on his head, burying it in the stone floor.</p><p>“Get up.” Luffy demanded as he pulled his foot away. When Arlong barely stirred, his head still rattled from the first two blows, Luffy lost patience with him. “I said get up!” Arlong felt his long hair grabbed and he was yanked out of the floor. Luffy’s fist slammed into his stomach and Arlong hacked and choked as the wind was forcibly knocked out of him. “You haven’t felt even a little of what you put Nami through!” Luffy grabbed the back of Arlong’s head and slammed it through the nearest wall. The Straw Hat Captain then dragged Arlong, face first, down the length of the wall before throwing him into the stairs.</p><p>“D-damn you!” Arlong growled as he threw a punch at Luffy. The black-haired man wasn’t having it though and weaved around Arlong’s blows with only a minimal amount of movement. Arlong grew more and more enraged as he threw punch after punch at the human. “Stay still and die!”</p><p>“No.” Luffy rejected his foot lashing upwards and kicking Arlong in the chin so hard the Fishman was launched through the ceiling and onto the second floor. Luffy jumped up after him and kicked the Fishman in the stomach before he could regain his feet. Arlong roared as he leapt at Luffy and tried to bite him with his serrated teeth. Luffy dodged the repeated attempts to bite him with Observation. Arlong was going feral in his rage and pain and it made it easy to predict the path of his attacks. An uppercut to the chin knocked Arlong upwards and through the ceiling again. Now on the third floor Luffy followed and caught the sucker punch Arlong tried to hit him with. Swinging the large Fishman around by his wrist, Luffy drove Arlong through another wall.</p><p>“Bastard!” Arlong growled out barely able to speak from his fury. The Fishman threw punches and kicks at Luffy, interspersed with attempts at biting him. Luffy dodged fluidly and eventually blocked one of Arlong’s kicks. The Straw Hat Captain quickly grabbed the Fishman’s leg and proceeded to bodily slam Arlong into the floor and walls. Another part of Arlong Park was quickly destroyed with Arlong being used as a sledgehammer. To finish Luffy tossed Arlong through the ceiling again leaving the Fishman staggering and breathing heavily when Luffy jumped through the new hole onto the fourth floor.</p><p>“You aren’t done yet.” Luffy informed the bruised and bleeding Arlong. “You haven’t suffered the same as what you put Nami through.” Luffy stalked towards the heavily breathing Fishman. “You’ll pay back everything you made her go through, in blood.”</p><p>“Sh-shut…your damn…mouth. You pathetic…inferior…worthless…human!” Arlong surged forward his mouth open wide, planning to crush Luffy’s head in his jaws. A back fist to his right cheek stopped that attack entirely and sent Arlong head first through a wall. Grabbing the long black hair of the bigoted Fishman Luffy yanked his head from the wall. Quickly grabbing Arlong’s head with his right hand, Luffy drove him forward into the wall again. Over and over Luffy put hole after hole into the walls of the smaller fourth floor of Arlong Park with the Fishman Captain’s head. In desperation to get away from Luffy, Arlong leaped upwards and crashed through the ceiling, dragging the Straw-hatted man with him onto the topmost floor of Arlong Park.</p><p>“What is this place?” Luffy questioned seeing stacks of papers around the room along with a small desk and chair.</p><p>“Do you really want to know?” Arlong questioned with a malicious grin as he panted.</p><p>“I asked, didn’t I?” Luffy deadpanned while looking at Arlong like he was stupid.</p><p>“This room is where Nami drew maps for me.” Arlong informed Luffy. “Every day we’d gather oceanic data and make Nami draw up maps for it. Even if she didn’t want to she knew she had no choice. I hold the lives of her village in my hands, what you’re doing here today only guarantees that I’m going to kill everyone in Cocoyashi and keep Nami here drawing maps for the rest of her life!” He threatened with a demented smile.</p><p>“Arlong!” Luffy roared; his fist, blackened by his Haki, slammed into Arlong’s face and rocketed the Fishman through the outer wall. All anyone outside saw was the fifth floor wall exploding outwards and then a crash from the ground in front of the building. When the dust settled slightly the residents of Cocoyashi could see Arlong’s mangled face and bloody body in a crater. Said Fishman couldn’t even register his broken teeth growing back in through the pain he was in. A crash next to him broke him from his haze as he looked up into the face of an enraged Monkey D. Luffy.</p><p>“We’re not done.” Luffy growled out his eyes absolutely murderous. He reached for Arlong only for the Saw-Shark Fishman to throw himself to the side and try to crawl towards the sea. “Get back here!” Luffy roared before noticing the broken top half of the Kiribachi he’d tossed aside earlier. Without any really thought, Luffy grabbed the broken blades and hurled them at Arlong.</p><p>“Arrraaaghh!” Arlong screamed in pain as the spinning triangular blades of his broken sword tore through his right arm. He crashed into the concrete and howled in agony, knowing without looking that his arm had been severed just above the elbow.</p><p>“I said we’re NOT done!” Luffy rumbled out as he grabbed Arlong by his right ankle and dragged the Fishman away from the pool that led out towards the sea. “I made a promise to Nami and I intend to keep it!” With that Luffy dropped Arlong’s ankle and grabbed his left arm. Stomping on the Fishman’s back, close to the left shoulder, Luffy savagely jerked the arm in the opposite direction.</p><p>“Arraaagh!” Arlong yelled out in pain as his arm was broken. Nami watched on, fire in her eyes, as the bastard that took her mother from her and Nojiko was finally getting what he deserved. Sickening pops and crack were heard by everyone watching as Luffy twisted Arlong’s arm and then started pulling on it; with Arlong roaring out his agony the whole time. With a sickening sound of flesh and bones tearing and breaking Arlong ‘The Saw’ lost his left arm. The severed limb was tossed aside by Luffy as Arlong started going into shock.</p><p>“Wake up!” Luffy demanded as he pulled Arlong upright by his long hair. Getting no response from the Fishman, Luffy reared his fist back and punched Arlong in the face. “I said wake up!” Seeing Arlong’s eye, the one that wasn’t swollen shut already, look towards him Luffy took his right hand from Arlong’s hair and wrapped it around the broken Fishman’s throat. “Is this good Nami?” He asked as he looked towards his Lover.</p><p>“Almost.” Nami replied as she walked over to Luffy and what remained of Arlong. “Finish the bastard off, but make it painful.” The orangette growled; hate in her eyes as she gazed at Arlong. Only his brutal death would end the hatred she felt in her heart at the mere sight of him.</p><p>“Right.” Luffy agreed as he tightened the grip he had on Arlong’s throat. “One volt.” A spark appeared on Luffy’s hand, shocking Arlong slightly. “Ten volts.” A larger spark shocked Arlong again. “One hundred volts.” Luffy continued as Arlong twitched from the electricity. “One thousand volts.” Arlong jerked but his broken body could do nothing to escape the grip Luffy had on his neck. “Ten thousand volts.” Arlong spasmed as the increasing voltage coursed through his body. “One hundred thousand volts!” Smoke began to emit from Arlong’s body as the heat of the electricity started to cook him alive. “One million volts!” A bright spark emerged from Arlong as his body couldn’t contain the voltage anymore. “Ten million volts!” An even brighter white-blue light covered Arlong’s body for a few moments before dissipating. “One hundred million volts!” Most of the residents of Cocoyashi had to turn away as the brightness of the lightning blinded them. Arlong was briefly brighter than the sun as Luffy let his power surge through the bastard. No one hurt his nakama and got away with it! No one hurt HIS Nami!</p><p>“Holy shit.” Nojiko breathed out as she watched the bright lightning disappear. She was overjoyed to see the monster that killed her mother suffering before he died. But she had to wonder how much more Luffy could hurt Arlong before the Fishman died. The fact that she was getting some closure from this eased the pain of her heart. Though she would admit that her sister had found a remarkable man to be her Lover, Luffy had done what many on Cocoyashi had thought impossible.</p><p>“Why’d you stop?” Nami asked a moment later when Luffy didn’t continue.</p><p>“He’s dead.” Luffy informed her as he let go of Arlong’s throat and the charred, smoking body collapsed backwards onto the ground. “It’s over.”</p><p>“Luffy…” Nami spoke softly as she walked closer and stood next to him.</p><p>“You’re my nakama, Nami.” Luffy stated as he turned to face her. “MY Nami.” He smiled brightly at her while pulling her into his arms and holding her close.</p><p>“Yeah.” Nami smiled up at him before her arms looped around his shoulders. “Thank you, Luffy. Thank you so much.” Nami inclined her head and brought Luffy down for a kiss. The two kissed softly what limits that used to hold them back now gone as Nami quickly deepened the kiss. If the two of them hadn’t been so wrapped up in each other they would have heard the confused and shocked exclamations of the Cocoyashi villagers. They might have also heard Sanji’s yell of, ‘It’s not fair! Damn shitty Captain!’, but nothing could break them from their focus on each other at the moment.</p><p>“We’re free!” A loud cheer rang out as the Cocoyashi residents suddenly realized that their nightmare was over. People began to laugh and some even teared up in happiness. The spreading joy was cut off however, by the arrival of a certain Marine Captain and his subordinates.</p><p>“Hold it right there!” Nezumi chuckled with his mousey laugh. All of the Cocoyashi villagers glared at the corrupt Marine Captain. “What a lucky day, today is. Very nice, I saw the entire fight and I must say…good work.” The condescending tone made everyone within earshot grimace at the man even further. “Now that Arlong is out of the picture; I’ll be taking all of the money I was supposed to bring to him in addition to all the treasure in Arlong Park. Now drop your weapons! Captain Nezumi of Marine Branch 16 will be getting all of the credit for this incident!” His gloating was interrupted by a fist to the face!</p><p>“I’m still angry enough to take you out too.” Luffy rumbled his Conqueror’s Haki seeping into the air. Nezumi held his injured face as he scrambled backwards from the Straw-hatted Pirate. Noticing the Marine sailors reaching for their weapons Luffy turned his gaze on them. “Run.” A wave of force from Luffy had all of the sailors immediately breaking out in flop sweats before they grabbed their injured Captain and started running back towards their ship.</p><p>“I’ll get you back for this! You’re the ‘Straw Hat’ Pirates, correct? You’ll rue the day you crossed Captain Nezumi!” Nezumi hollered back as he was dragged away. He didn’t expect Nami to suddenly rush towards the retreating sailors and assemble her staff. “What’re you doing?!” Was the only thing Nezumi could scream before Nami bashed him across the face with her staff, knocking him from the carry of his subordinates.</p><p>“That was for my mother’s mikan grove you damaged!” Nami yelled at the cowering Marine. “And this is for stealing all the money I worked so hard to collect!” Nami activated her ‘Shock Staff’ and began to pummel Nezumi over and over again. To finish up she jammed the metal end right into the man’s crotch and let the electricity flow!</p><p>“Arraaagh!” Nezumi wailed before his body seized up from the shock and he lost consciousness.</p><p>“Never come back!” Nami exclaimed as she swung and knocked Nezumi back towards his terrified subordinates. The panicking sailors quickly picked Nezumi’s battered body up and ran for their ship as fast as possible. Once the Navy ship had started to shrink into the distance the villagers began to cheer again.</p><p>“Quick, spread the word! Arlong Park has fallen! The Conomi Islands are free!” One villager yelled as cheers went up again. The Straw Hat Pirates all looked on with smiles or grins of their own as they watched the villagers prepare for a celebration almost a decade in waiting.</p><p>“Luffy…” Nami grinned at her Lover as she sauntered up to him.</p><p>“Yeah, Nami?” Luffy asked as he wrapped his arms around her waist while she pressed herself against him.</p><p>“Let’s continue where we left off.” Nami smiled sultrily as she quickly kissed him. Luffy happily reciprocated as he pulled her flush against him.</p><p>“Why is he so lucky?” Sanji grumbled as he kicked at the dirt while moping.</p><p>From there it was a bit of a whirlwind of activity. A large party was being held throughout Cocoyashi Village. People from all over the Conomi Archipelago were coming to celebrate the fall of Arlong. The town was quickly filled with cheer and laughter. The smell of various grills cooking multitudes of meats and vegetables filled the air and adults drank deeply for the first time in years while kids ran around enjoying the festivities. Luffy and Usopp had easily gotten caught up in the spirit of the celebration. Usopp was on a stack of tables and leading several villagers in a rendition of some kind of shanty Luffy wasn’t familiar with. Luffy, predictably, had been running around the village sampling every bit of meat he could get his hands on. In this running around he found Nami, who had actually been looking for him.</p><p>“Hey Nami!” Luffy greeted with a big smile.</p><p>“Hey Luffy, enjoying yourself?” Nami asked rhetorically seeing his hands full of food.</p><p>“Shishishi, yep!” Luffy laughed as he looked at her. His eyes fell onto her left shoulder and a soft smile came to his face. “Nice tattoo, I like this one a lot better.”</p><p>“Me too.” Nami agreed as she turned so he could look at it fully. It was a stylized pinwheel with a mikan hanging from the end of the top curl. “Let’s walk together.” She suggested, getting instant agreement from Luffy. The lovers walked for a bit and Luffy finished off the food he already had. When he started looking around for a new food stall he realized that they were near the edge of the village.</p><p>“Nami?” Luffy questioned his lover only for her to smile at him and take his hand.</p><p>“Come on.” Nami whispered and began to lead him towards her and Nojiko’s home. The two arrived quickly and Nami continued to pull Luffy slightly. She led him to a door and opened it revealing a large bathtub and shower. Nami let go of Luffy’s hand and turned the water on. Checking the temperature, Nami nodded after a few seconds and then turned the shower on. With the shower going Nami bent down to unstrap her sandals.</p><p>“Are you taking a shower, Nami?” Luffy asked as the orangette stood back up and pulled her shirt over her head. Her bra-clad breasts came into view and Luffy found his gaze drawn to them quickly.</p><p>“We’re taking a shower, Luffy.” Nami winked at him as she unclipped her bra and tossed it to the side. The large smile on Luffy’s face at seeing her topless always made Nami feel bold and sexy. Something about making a man as strong as Luffy so enraptured was confidence boosting like nothing else.</p><p>“Together?” Luffy questioned his head tilted slightly.</p><p>“Yes, now get undressed.” Nami giggled as she pulled down her shorts and panties at the same time. Luffy had only just tossed off his cardigan when he saw Nami fully nude for the first time. The orangette could practically feel his eyes roving over every inch of her body. She gave him a sultry look, her eyes half lidded, as she posed slightly letting him see all of her.</p><p>“Beautiful…” Luffy trailed off, just staring at Nami.</p><p>“Why thank you~” Nami teased before looking at him. “Finish up and join me.” With that she turned around, making sure to give Luffy time to look at her from the back, before she stepped under the warm water of the shower. Luffy stared dumbly for a minute longer, watching the water cascade down Nami’s body. The water followed her every curve, from her large breasts to her slim waist, and the flare of her wide hips. He even followed the water as it flowed down her long legs before realizing she was waiting for him. He kicked off his sandals and had his shorts and boxers off in quick succession before he gently hung his hat off of a hook on the back of the door. He stepped into the shower and Nami gently leaned back into him. “Nice of you to join me.” She breathed out huskily.</p><p>“Nami…I want to…” Luffy whispered as his hands found her hips and pulled her flush against him.</p><p>“You know you’re allowed to touch.” Nami purred, immediately feeling Luffy’s hands trail up her trim stomach and cup her breasts. Nami didn’t know what it was exactly, but every time Luffy touched her like this she was quickly lost in the sensation of his hands on her body. Feeling his strong hands groping and massaging her large tits made her start grinding her ass against him.</p><p>“So soft…” Luffy breathed into her ear and Nami let out a small moan as he began to play with her nipples. She could feel his reaction to her body pressed against her as she pushed back against him.</p><p>“Mmm, Luffy~” Nami cooed happily as she enjoyed his hands on her breasts. Nami fumbled slightly as she reached for the soap and sponge, but she managed to get them and start lathering the sponge. “Luffy~” She moaned as her lover’s left hand trailed down her tone stomach and glided over her sex.</p><p>“So warm.” Luffy mumbled into her ear and Nami shivered in pleasure as his curious digits began to explore.</p><p>“We still…oh~…need to wash…” Nami mewled as Luffy seemed to instinctively find her weak spots.</p><p>“Ok…” Luffy pouted as he started to pull his hands away from her body. Nami turned around and brought the lathered sponge all over her tits, leaving them soapy and slick, before running the sponge up and down his chest with a mischievous grin.</p><p>“I didn’t say stop~” Nami moaned out softly and Luffy beamed at her as his hands quickly went back to where they’d been. “Ahh~” She gasped as she washed him.</p><p>“Nami~” Luffy panted as the orangette began to ‘wash’ his hardened length. “That feels awesome!” He panted and Nami teased him as she moved her slick, soapy hand up and down.</p><p>“Does it?” Nami teased as she stroked him. “We’ll do something better once we’re clean~”</p><p>“Really?” Luffy questioned; a dopey smile on his face.</p><p>“Yeah…we’ll work on getting all hot and sweaty again~” Nami breathed hotly before capturing his lips. The two stayed like that for several moments, Nami stroking Luffy while his hands explored every part of her body. At some point Luffy had taken the lathered sponge and began to wash her body. He didn’t miss an inch of her. Nami gasped and moaned as Luffy gently scrubbed her body. She noticed he paid special attention to her tits, sex, and ass considering he groped and explored almost as much as he ‘washed’.</p><p>Several minutes later the two finally left the shower. Cleaner than they had been but about to get just as dirty again, if not more! Nami giggled happily as Luffy picked her up in a ‘Princess Carry’ and she told him where to go. Opening the door that Nami told him to Luffy found a bedroom with a good sized bed. He quickly carried Nami over to it before setting her on it and kissing her. The two shared a deep kiss for a long while before pulling back for air. Gazing at each other lustfully the two were quick to run their hands over each other. Nami loved running her hands over Luffy’s defined, muscled torso and Luffy couldn’t seem to get enough of her body at all.</p><p>“Luffy, I’ve got a surprise for you~” Nami whispered sexily as she locked eyes with him.</p><p>“What’s that?” Luffy wondered as his mind was clouded by passion and lust.</p><p>“Me~” A familiar voice, though far more sultry in tone, announced from behind him. Turning to the voice confirmed it to be Nojiko, except she was just as naked as the two of them. Her tanned skin on full display and showing no lines, had Luffy had more ‘higher thoughts’ at the moment he might have realized what a full body tan implied.</p><p>“Nojiko?” Luffy questioned as Nami’s older sister sauntered over to the bed. Her large breasts and wide hips giving her a beautiful ‘hourglass’ figure much like her little sister.</p><p>“Nami and I both want to thank you for what you’ve done for us, Luffy~” Nojiko purred as she leaned forward practically putting Luffy’s face in her large tits. “So for tonight you get to have a pair of sisters for yourself.” She winked at him and Nami giggled as she felt Luffy ‘twitch’ in her hand at the thought.</p><p>“Ooh~…I think he likes that idea, Nojiko.” Nami grinned naughtily as Nojiko smirked.</p><p>“Why though?” Luffy managed to ask, even as his more base desires were screaming at him to shut up and go with it!</p><p>“Like I said, to thank you.” Nojiko smiled beautifully at him as she sat on his opposite side from Nami. “The Conomi Archipelago is also in need of a population boom. No one wanted to bring a newborn into the world while under Arlong’s control. There hasn’t been a single birth in over eight years, Luffy. We lost people to Arlong and his men too. The Conomi Islands are at a population low right now. I have no doubt that several dozen couples are already starting to ‘correct’ that tonight. I want to thank you and help out my home. Do you want me?”</p><p>“Say yes.” Nami whispered hotly as she nibbled on his earlobe.</p><p>“Yes.” Luffy immediately said his voice heavy with lust and passion. Both sisters giggled before their eyes became half lidded and filled with lust.</p><p>“Come here Nami, let big sis show you something.” Nojiko smiled alluringly as she knelt before Luffy. Nami joined her sister and watched with rising heat as Nojiko took Luffy ‘in hand’ and gave the tip a lick. Luffy shuddered at the feeling while locking eyes with Nojiko. “Watch and copy when it’s your turn, Nami.” Nojiko winked at her sister before she dragged her tongue from base to tip along the underside of Luffy’s shaft. The Lightning Man groaned low in his throat at the sensation, only to do it again when he felt Nojiko take him into her mouth.</p><p>“Damn~!” Luffy panted as Nojiko caught his eyes again and began to bob her head up and down his length. The bluenette sucked him slowly at first before speeding up. Luffy gripped the sheets at the new feeling and Nojiko hummed as she slowly moved back up his length until he slipped from between her lips.</p><p>“Your turn, Nami.” Nojiko purred as Nami moved forward and took her place. The orangette went slower. She gently stroked his slick shaft up and down before swirling her tongue around the head.</p><p>“Nami~!” Luffy gasped as his lover teased his sensitive head before their eyes met and Nami descended. Their eyes never lost contact as Nami bobbed her head, taking a little more of Luffy’s length each time. Luffy groaned in pleasure as Nami gazed up at him with love and lust as she took him deeper. The orangette gagged a bit when she went further and backed off to breathe.</p><p>“I don’t have much experience with deep throating either.” Nojiko admitted as she took Luffy back into her mouth and began to suck him off again. She bobbed her head while her hands stroked what she couldn’t take or fondled his sack. Luffy had never experienced this before and was barely able to speak in time.</p><p>“Nojiko! I’m going-” Luffy tried to say only to shake as he hit his peak. Nojiko held him in her mouth and received the whole load. She gulped and sucked at him repeatedly while watching his face and the pleasure running across it. When Luffy finished Nojiko pulled back and stuck out her tongue, she panted sexily as she showed him that nothing was left.</p><p>“Nojiko~ No fair.” Nami pouted cutely seeing her sister take Luffy’s seed for herself.</p><p>“Not to worry Nami, he’s all yours for the first round.” Nojiko promised and Nami stood up. Luffy had mostly recovered and gazed at her naked form with desire. Nami pushed Luffy backwards until he was lying on his back on the bed. With sensual movements she straddled him before taking his length and pressing it against her lower lips.</p><p>“Luffy~ I want this~” Nami purred out as she rubbed his head against her slick sex.</p><p>“Alright~” Luffy rumbled out as his hands when to her hips. Nami licked her lips as she guided him into her before sinking down slowly. “Tight… so hot~” Luffy groaned as he was engulfed bit by bit into Nami’s wet heat.</p><p>“So full~” Nami moaned out as she finally bottomed out and felt Luffy pressed against her deepest spot. “Ha~ So big Luffy~” Nami breathed deeply before raising her hips a bit and then sinking back down. Both lovers moaned at the friction before Nami repeated the motion. Slowly the two began to develop a rhythm and their pleasured cries got louder. “Luffy~ More~” Nami moaned lewdly as Luffy gripped her hips and began to bounce her on his length.</p><p>“Nami~” Luffy groaned as he helped Nami move while matching her motions with his thrusts. Nojiko licked her lips as she watched the passionate coupling in front of her. Luffy was quite the man, Nami seemed to be more than enjoying herself after all.</p><p>“Luffy~ Yes! Faster!” Nami cried out as she was bouncing on him. Her hips moving almost of their own accord as she rode her lover. His thrusts stretching and filling her again and again as they indulged in each other’s bodies. Nami leaned forward, her hands on Luffy’s chest as she let her large breasts hover over Luffy’s face. “More~” She mewled as they continued to thrust.</p><p>“Yes~” Luffy groaned as he took Nami’s right nipple into his mouth and began to lick and suck on it.</p><p>“Luffy~!” Nami howled as she was further stimulated. Luffy’s hands moving from her hips to her amazing ass made her moan lewdly again, her tongue lolling out of her mouth as even more pleasure was brought to her.</p><p>“Nami…you feel…so good~” Luffy panted as he let go of her right nipple only to take her left one into his mouth for the same treatment.</p><p>“Ha~ Fuck~” Nami moaned wantonly as she increased the speed of her bounces. “Close~ Luffy I’m so...ooh~…close~”</p><p>“I’m going…to…” Luffy grunted as he practically started to bounce Nami off the bed with his thrust from below.</p><p>“I want it~ Luffy…do it…inside~” Nami moaned as her body spasmed and her eyes almost rolled up as she had the most intense orgasm of her life. “Yes~!”</p><p>“Nami!” Luffy roared as he slammed their pelvises together and released. Nami mewled happily as she sank onto his chest while his hot seed filled her up.</p><p>“Luffy~” Nami cooed happily as she looked up at him from his chest. Managing to pull herself up a bit she locked lips with her lover. The two kissed and ran their hands over each other as they basked in the afterglow.</p><p>“I hope you aren’t done Luffy~” Nojiko teased as she spread her legs revealing her dripping sex. Luffy’s response was to sit up and move her onto her hands and knees. Nojiko grinned sexily as he lined himself up with her dripping slit and brushed the tip against her. “Don’t tease MEEE!” Nojiko cried out as Luffy buried himself to the hilt inside her in a single, powerful thrust. Her arms almost collapsed and she shook from a minigasm at the powerful thrust, moaning as her walls were stretched wonderfully by Luffy’s length.</p><p>“So…tight~.” Luffy groaned as he gripped her tanned hips and began to slowly pull his length from her depths.</p><p>“Fuck~…more~” Nojiko moaned out and instantly felt Luffy run his hands over her ass before he thrust forward again and smashed his pelvis against her sexy tanned ass. Some part of him liked watching her ass cheeks bounce and ripple as he thrust into her. If Nojiko’s constant moaning and mewls for more were any indication; she was enjoying herself too.</p><p>“Nojiko!” Luffy rumbled lowly as he picked up his pace. He hilted himself inside her depths every single time he thrust forward and Nojiko was gripping the sheets for dear life.</p><p>“Luffy~” Nojiko moaned, near delirious from the bursts of pleasure going off in her head. She thrust her hips back against his incoming thrusts, the sound of his hips meeting her ass getting louder as they fell deeper into the rhythm they’d established. Luffy groaned as he continued his powerful, deep thrusts into Nojiko’s soaked sex. Nojiko clawed at her sheets as she found it harder and harder to have any thoughts beyond ‘Harder’, ‘Faster’, and ‘More’. She couldn’t care less though as she threw her hips backwards to meet Luffy’s powerful thrusts.</p><p>“Nojiko I’m~!” Luffy warned her as his thrusts became shorter but more rapid as he barley pulled himself from her depths at all. Nojiko moaned hotly as she turned her head to look back at him.</p><p>“Inside~” Nojiko purred. “Give me all of it~” Luffy needed no further incentive as he slammed his hips forward over and over again before he practically roared out his release. “Yes~!” Nojiko moaned as her eyes almost rolled into her head when Luffy’s seed flooded her depths and filled her completely. In some small part of her mind, that wasn’t pounded into a mess of pleasure, Nojiko was excited and amazed at the amount Luffy was filling her with. She was certain she’d be helping to restore the population of the Conomi Islands in a few months.</p><p>“Damn…so good~” Luffy panted heavily as he pulled out of Nojiko. A base, animal part of him enjoyed watching as his seed began to leak out of the young woman before the haze of passion started to clear up a little bit.</p><p>“Luffy~ You aren’t done yet, are you~?” Nami coyly asked as she lay back on the bed, outright presenting her naked body to him.</p><p>“I have a lot of stamina.” Luffy chuckled deeply and Nami squirmed at his tone.</p><p>“Then come here~” Nami licked her lips as she beckoned him to her.</p><p>-Next Morning-</p><p>Luffy yawned as he awoke. Slowly opening his eyes he heard some birds outside and saw sunlight coming in through the window. His mind cleared up a bit from sleep and he noticed the two beautiful women laying on each of his sides. Nami was curled up around his left arm, one of her legs entangled with his. While Nojiko was pressed up against his right side her head on his chest.</p><p>“That was a good night.” Luffy sighed happily as he pulled the sisters closer to himself. They’d stayed up until the early hours of the morning enjoying each other. Unlike some of the raunchier stories he’d heard from some of Shanks’ crew when they were drunk. Nami and Nojiko hadn’t ‘been together’ last night. Luffy supposed that made sense, they were sisters after all; family wasn’t supposed to do ‘that’ together according to both Makino and the Doctor of Fuusha Village. Though both Nami and Nojiko had ‘enjoyed’ themselves with him multiple times last night. Three times with Nojiko and four with Nami, Luffy had actually been a bit worn out when they’d stopped and cuddled together for sleep.</p><p>It was a good morning for Monkey D. Luffy.</p><p>-Marine Branch 16-</p><p>It was NOT a good morning for Captain Nezumi as he awoke in pain. He was barely able to open his eyes before he realized his hospital bed was surrounded by men in suits. Forcing his eyes to focus the corrupt Marine went pale as he saw the emblem on the men’s suits. Cipher Pol 1, also known as ‘The Inquisition’ among the Marines, the World Government’s agents dedicated to looking into corruption and treason.</p><p>“Captain Nezumi, we have questions for you.” The older man at the foot of the hospital bed stated. The large build of the man strongly hinting at the mass of muscles covered by his suit. “You WILL answer them all.”</p><p>“Be-before that…there’s a Pirate Crew…I need to…” Nezumi tried to postpone the coming interrogation.</p><p>“That is already being handled by Headquarters; it is no longer your concern.” The agent responded, shutting down any further excuses.</p><p>“I…see.” Nezumi sank into his hospital bed further.</p><p>“Now to begin, tell us about the Conomi Archipelago. Let’s start at eight years and five months ago.” The agent started as he pulled out a notebook while two of the other agents set up a video Transponder Snail to record the interrogation.</p><p>It was now sinking into Nezumi’s mind just how truly ‘Fucked’ he was. No one could lie to ‘The Inquisition’. Men made of far stronger stuff had tried and been broken before; Nezumi knew he didn’t have a chance in hell.</p><p>He was right.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>One Shark, well done, order up! Luffy has kept his promise! The Conomi Islands are free! Nami and Luffy have consummated their relationship! Nojiko says thank you too! Lucky, lucky, Captain Luffy! Nobody tell Sanji! Nezumi is screwed as well! All good things!</strong>
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  <strong>But now Headquarters has all the Incident Reports of the Straw Hats in the East Blue! What will the response of the higher ups be? A higher Bounty? Multiple Bounties? Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0014"><h2>14. Bounties, Epithets, Reactions</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! Time for the Consequences of the Straw Hats actions in East Blue! Bounties! Epithets! Reactions to said Bounties! We might even make it to a certain Marine Captain’s town! One with a ‘smoking’ habit…heh!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 14 – Bounties, Epithets, Reactions</strong>
</p><p>It had been three days since the death of Arlong and the massive party on Cocoyashi had finally wound down. People were waking up past noon with hangovers or just stumbling out of bed from not having slept properly in three days. But there was cheer in the air as people started to clean up and talks about rebuilding Gosa Village were spreading. The Straw Hats would be departing today and all of them had their fill of the three day party. Zoro had drunk every man on the island under the table at least once. Usopp had led cheers, shanties, and who knows what else throughout the party. The Gunman had even demonstrated his trick shooting for the people of the Conomi Archipelago. Sanji had disappeared, multiple times, with a rather buxom brunette woman and always came back smiling like a fool. Nami and Luffy, well they’d been ‘enjoying’ each other on multiple occasions throughout the multiday party. Nojiko had joined in almost as often and the tan, bluenette woman was smiling as she fondly rubbed her flat stomach.</p><p>“Bye everyone! I’ll miss you guys!” Nami waved as the Going Merry departed from Cocoyashi Village. The entire Village waved back at the orangette, none more so than Nojiko and Genzo. Only when the Going Merry disappeared over the horizon did the villagers stop waving.</p><p>“So, you think you’re expecting?” Genzo asked Nojiko quietly as he and Doctor Nako stood beside the tattooed woman.</p><p>“I think so, but it’s too early to tell.” Nojiko smiled happily her left hand caressing her exposed stomach.</p><p>“Come by the clinic in two weeks and I’ll check you out.” Nako smiled at the young woman. “No alcohol from now on and no smoking either.”</p><p>“I know, I know…” Nojiko playfully rolled her eyes. “I would never do anything to harm my baby.”</p><p>“The midwife is going to be ecstatic in the next few weeks, I’m sure.” Nako laughed. It had been eight years since there had been a birth in the Conomi Islands after all. The various midwives of the Archipelago would most likely become very busy over the next several months.</p><p>-Going Merry-</p><p>“Hey Sanji, who was that woman you kept disappearing with?” Usopp asked the Chef as the crew had lunch.</p><p>“Was she a brunette with a set of curves on her? About my height?” Nami questioned from beside Luffy.</p><p>“Uh…yeah.” Usopp nodded to the Navigator.</p><p>“That would be Yuzu; she has a ‘thing’ for blonde men.” Nami giggled and Sanji sighed with a dopey grin at the memory of the last few days.</p><p>“Yuzu-chwan~” Sanji sighed as he performed a twirl and sat down to eat his own lunch.</p><p>“Perverted Cook.” Zoro snorted as he drank from a bottle of booze. They had raided Arlong Park of everything of value, including food and booze, along with the residents of Cocoyashi. The Archipelago had stocked the Merry in thanks and used the rest for the party. Nami had told the villagers to split the money Arlong had hoarded among the islands again. She loved money, but she would never steal from her home and her people; at least nothing that they’d miss. The orangette grinned as she wondered if Genzo had noticed his wallet missing yet.</p><p>“What was that you Moss Head?” Sanji growled at the Swordsman.</p><p>“You heard me Dartbrow.” Zoro retorted with a glare.</p><p>“You want to go, Marimo?” Sanji questioned as he stood up, a glare on his face too.</p><p>“Sit down, don’t ruin lunch!” Nami snapped at the two, appearing to have shark-like teeth, as she punched both of them in the head.</p><p>“Yes, Nami-swan~” Sanji agreed, even with the lump on his head.</p><p>“Witch.” Zoro grumbled as he held his own lump.</p><p>“Shishishi!” Luffy laughed at his crew’s antics while sneakily taking food from Usopp, Zoro, and Sanji’s plates.</p><p>-Navy Headquarters of the East Blue-</p><p>A group of Marine Officers sat in two parallel lines across from each other. Each Officer had a prepared meal in front of them as they attended the emergency meeting that had been called today. Apparently a new Pirate Crew had caused quite a stir in a fairly short amount of time. Each Marine in the meeting was ranked Commander or Captain, except for the man doing the debriefing, who was a Lieutenant Commander.</p><p>“So these Pirates, you’re saying the Local Branches can’t handle them?” One Captain asked of the green-haired man, with a prominent receding hairline, that stood in front of a board at the front of the room.</p><p>“Yes, it has been a non-stop string of Incidents with this crew since they first appeared.” The man, Brannew, informed the Officers. “Even before they raised their flag, they struck out against several of the Big Names of the East Blue. All but one of these crews was wiped out completely.”</p><p>“That’s troubling.” One of the Commanders agreed. “To come out of nowhere and upset the established ‘pecking order’ of the East Blue Pirates in such a short time. That speaks of a level of strength not often seen in the East Blue of all seas.”</p><p>“Exactly.” Brannew nodded as he gestured towards the Bounty Posters on the board. “Buggy ‘the Clown’, with a Fifteen Million Beri Bounty; the Buggy Pirates were crushed by only three people and are the only crew that are still active.” He then pointed to the next Poster. “Kuro ‘of a Thousand Plans’, a man thought long dead; with a Sixteen Million Beri Bounty. He and the entire Black Cat Pirates were wiped out down to the last man; including Jango ‘the Hypnotist’ and the Meowban Brothers.” Brannew turned to gesture to the next Poster. “‘Pirate Admiral’ Don Krieg, with a Seventeen Million Beri Bounty; the entire Krieg Crew was also wiped out to the last man; including both Gin the ‘Man-Demon’ and ‘Iron Shield’ Pearl.”</p><p> “All of these Bounties exceed the East Blue average of Three Million.” A female Captain spoke up. “How did such people go unnoticed for this long?”</p><p>“As they were Civilians, or a lone Bounty Hunter in Roronoa Zoro’s case, they were never under any scrutiny.” Brannew shook his head before tapping his fingers on the last Poster. “Arlong ‘the Saw’, with a Twenty Million Beri Bounty, though from what we’ve received from Cipher Pol 1’s interrogation of Nezumi it would seem this Bounty would’ve been closer to Thirty Million if it had been correctly reported.”</p><p>“He LIED and COVERED for a Pirate?! For money?!” A bearded Captain roared out, a vein pulsing on the man’s forehead. Several of the other Officers had looks of anger on their faces as well. Only a few had a different look, one of shame and disappointment in a traitorous Officer.</p><p>“That is what the report states.” Brannew confirmed. “Naturally Nezumi, as a Traitor, has been sentenced to death. He’ll be hung at this very Headquarters in two weeks’ time.”</p><p>“As he damn well should be.” The bearded Captain growled out through gritted teeth.</p><p>“Continuing on, Arlong and his crew of Fishmen were also killed to the last man, except for a single escapee, Hatchan the Octopus Fishman and Swordsman for the Arlong Pirates. As Fishmen can travel underwater indefinitely we have had no luck trying to track him down. But Kuroobi and Chew both were slain by members of this group.” Brannew finished going over the Arlong Incident. “Seeing how quickly these established Pirate Crews were wiped out and with such a small crew doing so; we believe that each member of this new Crew requires a Bounty. The Captain’s may seem especially high, but we have confirmation of him possessing a Devil Fruit. In the East Blue a Devil Fruit is rare and an immediate Bounty of suitable scale will always be applied to a Pirate with one. With that being said, this is the ‘Straw Hat’ Pirate Crew and their Bounties!” The green-haired Lieutenant Commander stated as he flipped the board to reveal five new Bounty Posters.</p><p>-Three Days Later ~ Going Merry-</p><p>Did you raise the prices again?” Nami stared down the News Coo that had landed on the ship to offer newspapers for sale. The various News Outlets of the World all used a massive number of these fairly intelligent birds to fly across the oceans to sell papers. This bird species was even used by the World Post, the World Government run Postal Service, to deliver letters and packages to Sailors on long voyages. Many larger islands had mail sent to them to be picked up when Sailors, Pirates, Merchants, Bounty Hunters, or Civilians were on voyages or trips between islands. Going into any Post Office would let you see a list of names that the Office was holding mail for. If said mail wasn’t claimed within one year though, it was disposed of or became the property of the World Post.</p><p>“It’s only a paper, Nami, cut the bird some slack.” Usopp spoke up in the News Coo’s defense.</p><p>“If I buy one a day that starts to add up!” Nami retorted as she placed the Beri required into the News Coo’s pouch and then took a paper. The frightened bird took off shortly afterwards and was soon across the horizon. “Reading is good for the brain, plus it’s good to keep up with what’s going on in the World.”</p><p>“But we still have, what, like fifty million Beri down in the holds, right?” Usopp questioned. “I’m sure we can afford it.”</p><p>“Fifty one million three hundred twenty two thousand seven hundred fifty five, to be exact.” Nami rattled off, much to Usopp’s bug-eyed shock, as she went to recline in her lounge chair on deck. The orangette’s eyes were practically sparkling as she recalled how much money they’d gathered from Krieg’s Flagship and everything that they’d collected throughout their voyage through the East Blue.</p><p>“Again!” Zoro’s voice called out as he and Sanji sparred with Luffy. A loud ‘thud’ came from the back of the Merry a second later.</p><p>“Take this!” Sanji yelled a second later. The resulting silence was only broken a moment later by Sanji again. “Damn it, shitty Captain! Stop moving!”</p><p>“Shishishi! Why would I do that?” Luffy laughed loudly from the back.</p><p>“Oni Giri!” Zoro roared out, this was quickly followed by expletives and curses as Luffy had apparently dodged again.</p><p>“Man, I’m still worn out after training every morning, yet those two keep throwing themselves into it over and over again for hours!” Usopp shook his head at Zoro and Sanji putting themselves through so much extra sparring. He went back to filling some of his Trick Stars with Tabasco when he was badly startled by Nami.</p><p>“What the hell!” The Navigator exclaimed as several pieces of paper fell from within the newspaper. Usopp dropped the Tabasco and covered his hand in the spicy sauce. This was how he found out he had a small cut on his hand that he hadn’t noticed earlier.</p><p>“Ow!!!” Usopp hollered as he waved his hand around in pain and stumbled towards the kitchen to try and get some of the milk in the refrigerator. The whole time his hand felt like it was on fire, the Gunman could swear he saw flames leaping form his palm!</p><p>“What’s up, Nami?” Luffy asked as he dropped down next to her. Zoro and Sanji came walking down the stairs to the back of the Merry a few moments later.</p><p>“Look at this!” Nami yelled as she pointed to the papers that were laid out on the deck. The orangette looked a bit blue in the face as she looked at them. Curious, Luffy looked at the papers only for a wide smile to overtake his face a second later.</p><p>“Dead or Alive!” Luffy slapped his hand down on the Bounty Poster with his face on it. The laughter that followed made Nami bonk him over the head with her fist.</p><p>“Why’re you happy about this?!” Nami demanded. “This can only mean that Headquarters is involved! We might be deluged by Bounty Hunters AND Marines because of this!” The Navigator flopped back in her lounge chair with crocodile tears running down her cheeks.</p><p>“Heh.” Zoro smirked at seeing his face on a Bounty Poster.</p><p>“Why the hell is the Marimo’s higher than mine?!” Sanji complained as he looked at the differing amounts between his and Zoro’s Bounties.</p><p>“They didn’t even get my best shot.” Nami pouted as she looked at her picture.</p><p>“What’s going on?” Usopp asked as he walked up to his nakama with his hand bandaged. “Holy crap!” He cried out at seeing his face on a Bounty Poster.</p><p>“‘Straw Hat’ Monkey D. Luffy, Sixty Million Beri!” Luffy laughed loudly. He’d beaten Ace’s starting Bounty by five million! He couldn’t wait to see his brother again to rub it in! The large smile on his Bounty Poster picture showed Luffy in his most natural, a carefree and fun-loving Pirate. Not exactly intimidating, but Luffy didn’t much care.</p><p>“‘Santōryū’ Roronoa Zoro, Twenty Five Million Beri.” Zoro read off his own Poster with a smirk. His picture was taken after the fight with the Krieg Pirates, as far as he could tell. It captured him from the front and was a shot from chest upwards. He’d be easily recognizable to anyone that looked at his Bounty Poster. Though his Epithet was good, in his opinion, his unique sword style would gain recognition around the world because of this.</p><p>“‘Cat Burglar’ Nami, Sixteen Million Beri.” Nami sighed as she looked over her Poster. The picture did capture her, while fighting Pearl judging by the outfit, and her body from hips upward. It was ‘flattering’ to her figure at least, even if she had a look of concentration on her face. Though that look totally removed her natural cuteness!</p><p>“‘Black Leg’ Sanji, Twenty Million Beri.” Sanji nodded as he lit up a cigarette. He was still annoyed that the Moss Head had a higher Bounty than him, but he’d deal with it for now. The picture captured him from an angle, his blonde hair covering his eyebrows and only getting about half of his face in the shot. Still identifiable without much trouble, but it did cover up his most ‘distinctive’ facial features.</p><p>“‘Quadruple Guns’ Usopp, Fifteen Million Beri!” Usopp cheered happily as he read off his Bounty Poster! The shot was pretty clear, showing Usopp from the front and getting his four holstered pistols in the picture too. Kaya, Pepper, Carrot, and Onion would freak when they saw this! He was a Real Pirate now!</p><p>“All totaled up, the Straw Hat Pirates are worth One Hundred Thirty Six Million Beri.” Nami exhaled as she picked up the Bounty Posters. “That easily makes us the crew with the highest Bounty in all of the East Blue.”</p><p>“Let’s party!” Luffy exclaimed happily and was met by cheers from Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji.</p><p>“Sure, why not, I could use a drink.” Nami shrugged as Luffy put an arm around her waist and pulled her into his side. She was fairly certain she wouldn’t have to worry about anyone in the East Blue suddenly attacking them right now. For Pirates a Bounty was a sign of strength. High Bounties offered a Pirate more clout amongst other Pirates, and weaker Bounty Hunters wouldn’t bother them. Civilians were often far more likely to not antagonize a Pirate with a large Bounty too. All in all Nami felt her Lover’s Bounty might actually repel more danger than it brought; at least for a while.</p><p>-Whitebeard’s Ship ~ The Moby Dick-</p><p>“Ugh, I’m not going to hear the end of this.” Ace ran a hand down his face as he looked at his little brother’s first Bounty Poster. Luffy had apparently been making quite a stir in the East Blue since he’d set out on his adventure. Luffy always did say he was going to have the highest Bounty of any of the three brothers. Now he had topped Ace’s own starting Bounty. “Oh well, at least he’s doing well for himself.” Ace grinned while also looking over the four other Bounties marked with the same Jolly Roger as his little brother’s. “Straw Hat Pirates, huh? Seems he’s made some good friends.” Ace chuckled as he reached up and ran his fingers over the brim of his orange, wide-brimmed hat. “Hey Pops! Look at this! It’s my little brother’s first Bounty Poster!” The Mera Mera no Mi user cheered as he waved Luffy’s Poster over his head and walked towards Whitebeard.</p><p>“Gurararara!” Whitebeard chuckled as he took the Bounty Poster from Ace. “So this is the little brother you’ve told us about, the Lightning Brat?”</p><p>“That’s Luffy!” Ace smiled. “Kind of goofy looking, I know, but he’s my little brother!”</p><p>“Hmm, isn’t his starting Bounty higher than yours was?” Marco, the Commander of the First Division, asked with a teasing smirk.</p><p>“Only by five million, it’s not ‘that’ big of a deal.” Ace retorted and the rest of the crew started chuckling too. “Hey, shut it, you lot!” This only prompted more laughter from the crew and Ace quickly joined in as well.</p><p>-On a Revolutionary Army Ship-</p><p>“Hahahaha!” Sabo laughed as he stared at Luffy’s big grin on the Bounty Poster. “He actually did it!”</p><p>“Who did what?” Koala questioned, her head tilted to the side curiously.</p><p>“My little brother got his first Bounty, and it’s higher than Ace’s starting Bounty!” Sabo held out the Poster for Koala to take and look at. “Luffy did always say he was going to have the largest Bounty of all of us! I can’t wait to send Ace a letter about this! Oh I’m going to rib him good for this!”</p><p>“You’re certainly pleased; it’s nice to see you laughing like this.” Koala giggled as her partner continued to laugh. The young man in the picture had a very wide smile; and even through the photo Koala could tell that the straw-hatted teen was the carefree type. It was odd to think a man with such a smile could have earned himself the largest Bounty in the East Blue so quickly.</p><p>-Unknown Island ~ Somewhere in the Grand Line-</p><p>“Boss! We got company!” A Pirate yelled as he came rushing up to a large umbrella set up to shade the Captain of his crew and the higher ranked Pirates next to him.</p><p>“Hmm, calm down, it’s too early and I’ve got a hangover.” Shanks waved the man off, clearly not realizing or caring that it was past noon.</p><p>“Still acting so casual, I see.” Mihawk commented from behind the panicked pirate.</p><p>“Oh, Hawk-Eyes, long time no see.” Shanks greeted the Warlord. “I’m not feeling my best at the moment; did you come for a match?”</p><p>“I have no interest in challenging you when you’re drunk.” Mihawk declared. “I happened to come across some interesting Pirates not too long ago. One of them reminded me of something you told me a while back. The story of an amusing trio of brothers from a small village in the East Blue.” With that he brought out the Bounty Posters of Luffy and his crew.</p><p>“No way.” Lucky Roo smiled as he caught sight of the large grin. Shanks’ eyes widened and a large grin came to his face.</p><p>“So you’ve made it, Luffy.” Shanks smiled at the Poster. “Well, Hawk-Eyes, I can’t let you go after bringing something like this to me.” Mihawk’s eyes widened just a fraction as he looked at Shanks. Within seconds a flagon was placed in front of the World’s Greatest Swordsman and filled with booze.</p><p>“Of course….” Mihawk trailed off with a small sigh.</p><p>“Hahaha! Come on, Hawk-Eyes, drink up, drink up!” Shanks laughed as cheer and levity spread throughout the Red Hair Pirates. “We’re gonna party today!”</p><p>“Didn’t you have a hangover already?” Mihawk inquired as he picked up the full flagon.</p><p>“This is a time to celebrate!” Shanks laughed. “Come on, come on, come on, drink up!” Mihawk sighed before downing the flagon in one go; much to Shanks’ cheer and good mood! “Man! Who would have thought?! Luffy with Sixty Million on his head right from the start! Hahahaha!”</p><p>-Party’s Bar ~ Fuusha Village-</p><p>“Luffy’s got a price on his head!” A villager exclaimed as he held up the Bounty Poster.</p><p>“Sixty Million already?” Another villager whistled. “Our little village might actually get known for producing such an infamous Pirate!”</p><p>“Shut it, all of you!” Mayor Woopslap yelled at the celebrating villagers. “What’s so great about a criminal coming from our village?”</p><p>“Calm down Mayor.” Makino smiled softly as she handed him a drink. “Luffy looks so happy.” She smiled at the Poster.</p><p>“A pirate is a pirate!” Woopslap shook his head before sipping his drink.</p><p>-Going Merry-</p><p>“Hmm, where’s the next island Nami?” Luffy asked the Navigator as he sat on his ‘special seat’ atop Merry’s figurehead. Nami grinned up her Captain/Lover and showed him the map.</p><p>“Well, since you want to go to the Grand Line, we’ll have to head to Loguetown.” Nami explained. “It’s also known as the town of ‘the Beginning and the End’. It’s where the Pirate King was born, and where he died.”</p><p>“That’s cool!” Luffy exclaimed with stars in his eyes. “How long will it take us to reach it?"</p><p>“Since the Conomi Archipelago is literally in the opposite direction it’s going to take a bit of time. About a week from now before we get there based on our current speed.” Nami informed him. “If we’d been able to head for Loguetown from the Baratie we’d have made it there in about four days, maybe five, depending on the weather.”</p><p>“I’d go to the other side of the East Blue to take that bastard out for you, Nami.” Luffy smiled at her and Nami smiled brightly back at him. “If it takes us a little longer to get there, then it takes a little longer, no big deal.”</p><p>“Come here.” Nami smiled at him as she stepped up onto the bottom of the figurehead and pulled Luffy downwards by his cardigan. Their lips met and the two enjoyed a gentle kiss for several seconds before parting. “Thank you, Luffy.”</p><p>“Shishishi, any time Nami.” Luffy laughed.</p><p>“I’m going to check on my mikan trees.” Nami informed him as she let go of his cardigan. “I’m so glad we had space to plant a few of them, they’ll give us all the Vitamin C we need!”</p><p>“Can I have one?” Luffy asked with a grin as he jumped down to follow after the orangette.</p><p>“Sure, I’ll pick you out a ripe one.” Nami smiled as she took Luffy’s hand and the two walked up the steps to the back deck and then leapt up to the top of the large ‘planter’ that they’d added onto the back of the kitchen/lounge/helm cabin. Nami looked over the mikan trees for a bit. Checking their condition and looking out for any pests that might have tried to come along for the voyage. Once she was satisfied she found a nice, large, ripe one and picked it for Luffy.</p><p>“Thanks, Nami!” Luffy grinned as he followed his Lover back to the deck where her lounge chair was already set up.</p><p>“Just make sure you peel it first.” Nami teased him, knowing how fast Luffy ate sometimes.</p><p>“I know how to eat fruit.” Luffy playfully whined at her as he sat next to Nami and started peeling the mikan. He popped one of the sections he’d separated from the citrus fruit into his mouth and chewed it. Luffy took his time savoring the sweet, but slightly sour, taste for a moment before he took another slice and ate it. “These’re good.” He praised and Nami grinned at him.</p><p>“They’re a hardy breed that’s been grown in the Conomi Islands for a long time.” Nami informed him. “They can even handle drops in temperature that would kill most citrus trees. But they’re still susceptible to pests, so I’ll have to be vigilant with them.”</p><p>“Do you think Sanji could use them in the kitchen?” Luffy wondered as he’d grown up on fairly simple meals, since Dadan made the boys get their own food. Though Makino did, on occasion, make the brothers something special with local fruits.</p><p>“He’s already asked.” Nami informed him. “I believe we’re having a citrus fruit tart for dessert tonight.”</p><p>“Ooh!” Luffy grinned brightly at the thought of the dessert. He wasn’t much for an excess of sweet things. But he did enjoy them every now and then.</p><p>“So what are our plans until we get to Loguetown?” Nami questioned her Captain while she lay back on her chair and relaxed.</p><p>“Training.” Luffy replied instantly.</p><p>“Should have expected that.” Nami sighed fondly at her Lover. “Anything else?”</p><p>“Depends on if anything else happens.” Luffy shrugged as he tossed the peel of the eaten mikan overboard.</p><p>“Like what?” Nami asked curiously.</p><p>“An enemy Pirate Crew, or the Marines, or even some Bounty Hunters hoping to get lucky.” Luffy counted off on his fingers. “We could get in a fight with any of them if we run across them. It would be good for experience at least.”</p><p>“I’d rather not, but that could potentially mean more Beri for us to raid from the enemy.” Nami hummed thoughtfully, weighing the options between getting into a fight with another ship and the Beri they could potentially gain from it.</p><p>“If it happens, it happens.” Luffy shrugged as he tilted his head back and gently rested it against Nami’s toned stomach.</p><p>“I guess.” Nami grinned down at him as she gently pulled his treasured hat off his head. Luffy didn’t even flinch at the removal and Nami felt a warmth in her chest from it. She knew how much his hat meant to her Captain, the fact that he’d let her remove it without argument showed a deep level of trust. She gently ran her fingers through his hair as the two of them lazed about on deck. These quiet moments may well become a rarity once the crew entered the Grand Line.</p><p>-Unknown Location-</p><p>“Nanashi, did you see the newest Bounty Posters?” A rugged older man asked a younger man in plain grey clothes.</p><p>“What about them, Mienai?” ‘Nanashi’ asked the older man. Not like the two of them knew each other’s real names after all.</p><p>“Thought you might be interested in making some extra Beri.” ‘Mienai’ shrugged as he pulled the cork out of a bottle and took a swig. “Sixty Million on this new Pirate’s head; bring in the rest of his crew too and you’re looking at One Hundred Thirty Six Million.”</p><p>“I could get that much without the extra hassle.” Nanashi shrugged. “Besides I accepted that Job a while back. My Broker finally came in with a location too, so I’ll be heading out in a bit.”</p><p>“Finally tracked the guy down, huh?” Mienai chuckled as he set his bottle down.</p><p>“Yeah, guy has been doing ‘work’ for some illegal underground group masquerading as a Bounty Hunter Organization; so it took a while.” Nanashi yawned.</p><p>“That’ll stall ya.” Mienai nodded. “What’s the name?”</p><p>“Baroque Works.” Nanashi twirled his index finger in the air. “Sounds dumb to me. Though there are whispers that it has ties to a Warlord.”</p><p>“Careful that you don’t get caught up in that then, wouldn’t want you to get killed.” Mienai chuckled.</p><p>“I highly doubt any of the Warlords I’d be worried about are involved.” Nanashi dismissed. Mienai suddenly blasted a huge spray of colorless liquid at Nanashi. The liquid quickly covered the corner of the darkened room they were sitting in and dissolved everything to liquid.</p><p>“Damn.” Mienai tsked as he turned and saw Nanashi heading towards the door without a care.</p><p>“Not even on your best day, old man.” Nanashi waved back as he exited the darkened building, briefly revealing it to be night time outside.</p><p>“Another day of not getting that Bounty, or that Devil Fruit.” Mienai lamented as he took another swig from his bottle. “I could retire and live like a damn King with Three point Nine Billion Beri.”</p><p>“Such is the life of a ‘Shadow’ Mienai.” A man just as old as Mienai stated, appearing from the gloom of the room without a sound. “Your bill for the damages.” He said as he handed Mienai a piece of paper.</p><p>“Ah, damn it.” Mienai grumbled a he pulled out his wallet. “He might be one of the best, but no one is ever one hundred percent safe in the Kuro Kari; not even its members.”</p><p>-Outside-</p><p>“So…Alabasta, huh?” Nanashi mumbled to himself as he looked at the message that had just been passed to him, too fast for most people to ever hope to notice, from a completely forgettable ‘face in the crowd’. “But not for long. Heading…all the way out to Cactus Island? What the hell for?” Nanashi grumbled at the distance from his current location. “That’s a trip that’ll take a bit. Oh well, just have to deal with it.” With that Nanashi became just another person in the crowd, completely unremarkable and forgettable. “The things I do for a payday. At least the client is paying triple for the Fruit.” He flicked his thumb, launching a small rock he’d picked up, into the face of a drunken man that was being way too forceful with a ‘lady of the evening’. The man collapsed to the ground, appearing to have passed out from inebriation. “Supposedly he’ll be travelling with another Fruit User; guess I’ll be picking up some extra merchandise too. Never hurts to make some extra Beri.” He’d leave the island first thing in the morning, when he wouldn’t attract any attention to himself.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Bounties and Epithets have been revealed! Some are the same! Some are new! Now we’re headed for Loguetown! But what’s this? Seems we have some movement in the dark. What will happen? Who is Nanashi and who is he looking for? Will he and Luffy cross paths? Will they miss each other entirely? Who knows what the future will bring? Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0015"><h2>15. Loguetown, Captain and Swordswoman</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! Loguetown spotted! Time to prepare for the Grand Line! Now if only the Straw Hats could keep a low profile and slip in and out quietly. Yeah…that’s not going to happen with Luffy around!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 15 – Loguetown, Captain and Swordswoman</strong>
</p><p>“Land, ho!” Usopp called out from the Crow’s Nest while looking through a telescope. Luffy grinned widely, sitting on Merry’s Figurehead, as he watched the island get larger on the horizon.</p><p>“That’s Loguetown alright, excited?” Nami asked her Captain.</p><p>“Yep!” Luffy chuckled while looking ahead.</p><p>Several minutes later the Going Merry was docking at Loguetown. The Jolly Roger had to be hidden, as the sight of one would alert the local Marine Base and they’d never make it into town. The one on the main sails could easily be explained away as merely a Civilian Ship trying to deter other Pirates from attacking them. It was a fairly common tactic and on the open sea any reduction of danger was taken. The only way to truly know a Pirate Ship from a Civilian one faking it was to spot the Black Flag with the Crew’s Jolly Roger on it. Luffy and Usopp had carefully rolled the Jolly Roger up and tied it to the mast. A simple pull on the twine would set their flag loose to fly again, once they left Loguetown of course.</p><p>“What a huge town!” Luffy exclaimed as the crew stood on the large Main Street.</p><p>“Huh, so this is where the Age of Pirates began.” Sanji murmured while looking around the street.</p><p>“I want to see the execution platform!” Luffy nodded. He really wanted to see the spot where the Pirate King had met his end.</p><p>“I’m sure I can stock up on some fine ingredients in the market.” Sanji nodded as his eyes drifted from one woman to another. “Some fine women too.”</p><p>“I’ll go look for other equipment to buy.” Usopp informed the crew. “A town this large should have things you can’t get on smaller islands.” The Gunman began making a list in his head of the things he’d like to get. If he could get everything then perhaps he could complete the idea he had for Nami’s staff.</p><p>“I do have something I want to buy too, but….” Zoro trailed off and Nami’s eyes practically sparkled.</p><p>“I’ll lend you the money Zoro, at three hundred percent interest, that is.” Nami smiled pleasantly; as if she hadn’t just offered her crewmate an outright insane interest rate.</p><p>“Nami….” Luffy placed his hand on her shoulder and turned the orangette to face him. “None of that.”</p><p>“But Luffy~” Nami pouted and made her eyes tear up a bit. Luffy kissed her forehead and Nami sighed. Her Lover was getting wise to her tricks. She’d have to tempt him with ‘other’ things occasionally it would seem. “Fine~” She pecked his lips and then opened the purse she had slung over her shoulder.</p><p>“We aren’t low on funds, and we’re headed for the Grand Line. I don’t want Zoro to be stuck with bad swords. That goes for everyone. We should buy good quality stuff while we can. I don’t want my nakama getting hurt because we decided to be cheap when we didn’t need to be.” Luffy explained and all of his crew smiled slightly. This was another reason they followed Luffy as Captain. Simple-minded he often was, he knew enough to look after his subordinates, and he was willing to do anything for their sake if they required it.</p><p>“Alright, Luffy.” Nami smiled at him and the straw-hatted teen chuckled. “Just remember, we’re the most wanted Pirates in all of East Blue. People might recognize us if we do anything to draw attention to ourselves. So be careful.” That got a nod from each member of the crew, Luffy then turned to look at Zoro.</p><p>“How much do you think you’ll need Zoro?” Luffy asked his First Mate and Swordsman.</p><p>“A decent sword is usually one hundred thousand Beri.” Zoro mused as he placed his hand on Wado Ichimonji.</p><p>“What about one as good as that one?” Luffy asked as he pointed to the white sword.</p><p>“This one?” Zoro looked uncertain for a moment as he looked over his prized sword. “Probably a million Beri, maybe?”</p><p>“Give him two million Beri, just in case, Nami.” Luffy told his Navigator/Treasurer. Nami nodded, but when Zoro went to take the stacks of bills from the orangette he had to struggle. Eventually Nami relinquished the money with crocodile tears running down her face.</p><p>“Greedy witch.” Zoro rolled his eyes as he stashed the money in his haramaki. With that done he walked into Loguetown to search for a weapon shop.</p><p>“Usopp how much do you think you’ll need?” Luffy questioned and the Gunman held his chin as he thought.</p><p>“Say about, two hundred thousand Beri?” Usopp nodded at the number. Nami, begrudgingly, handed over the money and the Gunman made his way into town.</p><p>“Sanji?” Luffy turned to his Chef and the blonde was already murmuring to himself about ingredients and prices.</p><p>“I’d say one hundred thousand should be good.” Sanji nodded as he looked at Luffy. “That much should keep even your bottomless pit of a stomach fed for a while.” Nami handed the bills over to Sanji. The chef quickly headed towards the market, though both Nami and Luffy noticed he was following after a small group of twenty-something women.</p><p>“I’m going clothes shopping.” Nami informed Luffy with a smile. “I’ll make sure to get a few things for your eyes only~” She breathily whispered to him before leaving a lingering kiss on his cheek. “Make sure you don’t draw attention to yourself, okay?”</p><p>“Sure thing, Nami!” Luffy grinned widely. The Captain quickly headed off towards the center of town. Thankfully there were signs leading to the execution platform. It WAS a major tourist attraction for Loguetown after all.</p><p>“He better remember.” Nami sighed fondly after him. The pretty young woman then smiled as she turned and made her way to the merchant area. She could already see some signs for various shops, especially the signs that said ‘Sale’!</p><p>-Loguetown Marine Base-</p><p>“Captain Smoker, sir!” An Ensign saluted his Superior as he entered the room. The room in question was heavy with smoke. A white haired man sat on a couch and was stacking rocks on the coffee table in front of him. The man had an impressive tower of seven rocks stacked up already.</p><p>“What is it?” Smoker inquired as he placed the eighth rock on top of the stack.</p><p>“We have word that the Jolly Roger of the ‘Straw Hat’ Pirates was spotted docking earlier. We haven’t confirmed that the ship is there’s for sure, though it seems possible." The Ensign reported.</p><p>“Why are you bothering me if you haven’t confirmed anything?” Smoker questioned his subordinate with a sharp gaze.</p><p>“They’re the most wanted crew in the East Blue. The Captain alone has a Sixty Million Beri Bounty, sir. I felt it was prudent to inform you as soon as possible.” The Ensign answered and Smoker stood up.</p><p>“I do things at my own pace.” The Marine Captain exhaled a cloud of smoke around the two cigars in his mouth. “Don’t throw me off and break my concentration.” The white haired man put on his coat. The coat was white with dark blue fur lining the hem, cuffs, and collar of the garment. Several cigars were also strapped to the left side of the jacket. The smoking man then grabbed an oversized Jitte and strapped it to his back. “Where’s Tashigi?”</p><p>“Petty Officer Tashigi went to retrieve her sword from the weapons shop she frequents, sir.” The Ensign replied.</p><p>“Still? How many hours does that take?” Smoker questioned as they walked through the base. As soon as the duo emerged from the base and onto the city streets a small girl bumped into Smoker’s leg.</p><p>“Captain Smoker?!” The obvious Father cried out in fear. “Please forgive my daughter, sir!” The young girl simply sniffled at losing her triple scoop ice cream cone.</p><p>“Sorry about that.” Smoker apologized to the young girl. He placed several Beri coins into her small hands. “Go get yourself a five scoop cone, on me.” With that the large Marine returned to his full height and walked off with the Ensign.</p><p>“Th-thank you, Captain!” The father bowed while the little girl smiled and waved happily at the retreating Smoker. The man simply raised his hand in a backward wave and then turned the corner.</p><p>-With Sanji-</p><p>“What kind of fish is this?” Sanji asked the man at the stall he’d taken notice of. Technically he’d noticed the massive fish with the elephant-like features. But he’d never seen one before, so he felt the need to ask.</p><p>“This here is an Elephant True Blue Fin!” The Fisherman grinned with pride. “Though most just call it the Elephant Tuna. It’s a fish most commonly found in the South Blue. But on rare occasions you can catch them in the East Blue too! I pulled this one in with my fishing pole just this morning!”</p><p>“Whoa! You caught this thing with just a fishing pole? It’s huge.” Sanji complimented the Fisherman.</p><p>“Would you like me to slice up some of it for you, sir?” The Fisherman asked, happy to make a sale from his prized catch.</p><p>“No, don’t worry about that, I’ll buy the whole thing!” Sanji grinned and the Fisherman broke out into a smile of his own.</p><p>“Thank you for your patronage, sir!” The Fisherman replied happily. The man quickly picked up the large, heavy fish and wrapped it in thick paper. Sanji grinned as he pulled out the required Beri for the fish. A quick exchange and Sanji smiled as he hefted the large fish onto his shoulder.</p><p>“Now to get this back to the Merry.” Sanji hummed as he started walking. He spotted Usopp not a minute later and saw the large pack the Gunman was carrying. “Yo, Usopp, help me out a bit.”</p><p>“Sanji?” Usopp questioned as he turned to face his crewmate. “What’s that giant fish?!” Usopp’s eyes goggled at the sight of the large Elephant Tuna.</p><p>“Just bought it, nice and fresh!” Sanji grinned as he hefted it up slightly. “Help me carry it.”</p><p>“Oh, sure thing.” Usopp agreed.</p><p>“Thanks.” Sanji grinned, right before putting the front end onto Usopp’s shoulder.</p><p>“Hey! Wait a minute! Why am I carrying the heavy end?!” Usopp demanded as he readjusted his own purchases to his left hand.</p><p>“It’ll be good for your training, right?” Sanji chuckled as the two started heading toward the Merry. Their path would take them near the central plaza where the execution platform was too. So they figured they’d check it out on the way, before heading back to the ship.</p><p>-With Nami-</p><p>“How’s this?” Nami asked as she pulled aside the curtain of the dressing room. The orangette was showing off the outfit she had just put on. A corset top and miniskirt, with a coat that had fur trim and cuffs.</p><p>“It suits you wonderfully, Miss!” The shop keeper praised. Nami nodded before closing the curtain and trying on a different outfit. A few moments later she pulled the curtain open again.</p><p>“And this?” Nami questioned. Now wearing a long red dress with a fur stole around her neck. The dress even had a long slit up the side, all the way to her upper thigh, to show off her legs.</p><p>“How elegant you look, Miss!” The shop keeper complimented her with a smile.</p><p>“Hmm.” Nami hummed before closing the curtain and changing again. The orangette went through more outfits. Getting more compliments from the shop keeper. Strangely all of the compliments became a single word, each word starting with the letter ‘E’ at that.</p><p>“So, will you be buying all of these, Miss?” The shop keeper asked. The man, with his hair styled to look like a coat hanger of all things, was visibly shaking in excitement.</p><p>“Nope, just this one!” Nami smiled as she placed her choice on the counter next to the enormous pile of clothes she’d tried on.</p><p>“Please come again.” The shop keeper forced a smile as crocodile tears poured from his eyes.</p><p>“I’ll check somewhere else for more casual clothes.” Nami waved over her shoulder as she exited the boutique. She was happy with this outfit though. It was a beautiful light blue outfit. Corset top that showed off her slender waist and pushed up her large breasts; along with a matching miniskirt that showed off her long legs and stopped at mid-thigh. Plus the long jacket with lovely white fur along the collar and cuffs. She was sure that Luffy would love seeing her in this! ‘Though he’ll probably prefer getting me out of it even more!’ She giggled to herself as she entered a more casual clothing shop. She’d need to stop by a lingerie shop afterwards. She couldn’t tempt Luffy without sexy underwear to match her sexy new outfit after all!</p><p>“Welcome!” The female shop keeper greeted Nami as she walked into the store.</p><p>“Huh?” Nami stopped just as she passed the threshold of the store. “The temperature and pressure just shifted. Is it going to rain? It certainly feels like it. I’ll have to remember to get my purchases put in a plastic bag.”</p><p>-With Zoro-</p><p>“Seems like that Monster ain’t with you today!” A loud male voice exclaimed. The volume got Zoro’s attention and he looked across the street. There were two large men with swords drawn, facing down a young woman.</p><p>“It’s because of you guys that our Boss got locked up!” Another loud male voice joined in with the first.</p><p>“If you two still haven’t learned your lesson, then I’ll gladly be your opponent.” The woman replied back.</p><p>“Did I hear that right? A little Miss like you is going to fight both of us?!” The large man with pigtails questioned.</p><p>“Well, why not?!” The lanky man with the large mouth beside him crowed.</p><p>“Tell that Monster that he’s the reason our dream of going to the Grand Line was destroyed!” The duo of men yelled as they swung their swords at the woman.</p><p>‘She’s got this.’ Zoro realized as soon as he saw the woman begin to move. In an instant both large men hit the ground with slashes across their torsos. The young woman then proceeded to lose her footing and trip on the final step of her movement. ‘Well…I wasn’t expecting that.’ Noticing the woman’s glasses near his feet; Zoro picked them up and handed them to the swordswoman.</p><p>“Here, these’re yours, right?” Zoro offered the woman her glasses. The rest of the crowd had started chuckling at the klutz moment.</p><p>“S-sorry for troubling you.” The woman apologized as she took her glasses from him. “T-thank you very much.” When she looked up Zoro felt his body jolt. He was looking into the face of Kuina. This woman looked like a near perfect copy of his departed friend! Shaking his head a bit Zoro decided to get out of the area.</p><p>“You should work on your footing some more.” Zoro advised. “Tripping like that could lead to an accident or even death.” The woman nodded in agreement, a flush coming to her cheeks. Zoro walked away and continued his search for a weapons shop. He tried to put the Kuina look alike out of his mind.</p><p>-With Luffy-</p><p>“The execution platform.” Luffy muttered as he gazed upon the object. “This is where the Pirate King died.” The young man looked contemplative for a moment. “This is where the Age of Pirates began too. I want to see what the Pirate King saw in his last moments!” With that the Goro Goro no Mi user ran over and started to climb his way up the platform.</p><p>-With Zoro-</p><p>“That was a shock.” Zoro exhaled as he thought about the swordswoman again. “She looked way too much like Kuina. Well, it’s a big world. I just need to get over it.” A few moments later Zoro spotted the sign for a weapon shop and entered the store.</p><p>“Welcome!” The shop keeper smiled at him. He was a balding man with black hair that stuck out on both sides. He was rubbing his hands together and smiling a salesman smile. “Please feel free to look around as much as you want.”</p><p>“I want to buy some swords.” Zoro informed the man.</p><p>“Yes, of course, sir! We’ve got older swords, newer swords, and even esoteric swords! All for reasonable prices and backed by two hundred years of sterling reputation!” The shop owner spoke with a wide grin.</p><p>“Great…” Zoro rolled his eyes. He’d heard enough shop keeper spiels for a lifetime. He’d often broken his other swords in the past after all. He didn’t need to hear similar things every time he went to buy new swords.</p><p>‘Wait a minute!’ The shop owner felt himself start to sweat when he saw the sword on Zoro’s hip. ‘Is that? Could it be?’</p><p>“Young man, could I p-possibly s-see that s-sword you’ve g-got t-there?” He asked and Zoro cocked an eyebrow at the man.</p><p>“I guess.” Zoro shrugged and placed Wado on top of the counter.</p><p>‘This is it!’ The shop keeper gaped as he unsheathed the blade and looked it over for a moment. ‘Calm down, this could be a huge break! He might not even realize what he has!’</p><p>“Hmm, a good blade, the craftsmanship is notable to say the least. If you’re interested in parting with this sword I’d be willing to make a deal with you on any sword in my shop.” Ippon Matsu, the shop keeper, smiled at the green haired swordsman.</p><p>“Not for sale.” Zoro stated with cold finality and Ippon shivered instinctively. “Wado Ichimonji belonged to my late friend and I inherited it along with our shared dream. I will never part with this sword.”</p><p>“Y-yes, o-of c-course, s-sir!” Ippon nodded along. This man was a true swordsman! How long had it been since the old shop keeper had met one like him?</p><p>“I knew it!” A very familiar female voice spoke up. The Kuina look alike practically slammed into the counter in her rush to get close to the famous sword. “That’s Wado Ichimonji! The ‘Straight Road of Harmony’! It’s magnificent!”</p><p>‘What is she doing here?!’ Zoro yelled in his own head at seeing the woman again so soon.</p><p>“Wado Ichimonji is one of the twenty one Great Grade Swords!” The swordswoman beamed at the sword.</p><p>“Doesn’t matter.” Zoro stated as he took Wado back and sheathed it on his hip. “This sword is more important to me than its Grade or its value.”</p><p>“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t know.” The swordswoman bowed slightly in apology. “Wait, I recognize you, we just met in the street a little while ago! Thank you for finding my glasses, I’m Tashigi.”</p><p>“Its fine, I’m just trying to buy some swords.” Zoro replied. Making sure he didn’t give his name out. “I’d like two if possible.”</p><p>“Of course, feel free to look at our collection of blades. The blunt old swords are in the barrels along the wall. The new swords are on the racks against the other wall. The highest quality swords are on their own racks on the wall next to me.” Ippon pointed out each area. “And you, woman, you’re here to pick up your ‘Shigure’ correct? Here, it’s been polished.” The shop keeper handed the sword over to the young woman. “What a wallflower like you is doing carrying a Grade Sword I’ll never know.”</p><p>“Three swords, huh? You must like them. You remind me of a certain Bounty Hunter.” Tashigi claimed as she watched Zoro pull a sword from one of the three barrels.</p><p>“A certain Bounty Hunter?” Zoro questioned as he looked the sword over. He wasn’t even looking in her direction.</p><p>“Yes, Roronoa Zoro, do you know of him?” Tashigi questioned.</p><p>“I’ve heard that name quite a bit.” Zoro nodded as he placed the sword back in the barrel.</p><p>“He’s quite the famous swordsman here in the East Blue. Or maybe I should say infamous.” Tashigi shook her head. “It seems all the most famous blades are in the hands of Pirates and Bounty Hunters these days. It’s such a shame. Those swords must be crying while being used for evil.”</p><p>“One’s occupation usually reflects the times they live in.” Zoro stated as he looked at Tashigi. “Everyone has their own circumstances. You can’t call everyone evil just because they do something differently than you.”</p><p>“I like bad guys!” Ippon spoke up from the counter. “Plenty of pirates used to come through here looking to head for the Grand Line. Then that monster Captain of yours was put in charge of this town. Then right after that, boom, no more customers!”</p><p>“Captain Smoker is not a monster!” Tashigi retorted quickly.</p><p>“He’s a Devil Fruit User! That more than qualifies him to be called a monster!” Ippon shouted back at the young woman.</p><p>‘Devil Fruit?’ Zoro filed that bit of information away in his mind.</p><p>“Regardless, as a swordsman myself, I vowed to train hard with my ‘Shigure’. Then I’ll travel the world and liberate the Famous Blades from evil hands! No matter if they’re one of the twelve Supreme Grade, one of the twenty one Great Grade, one of the fifty Skillful Grade, or one of the one hundred Grade blades!” Tashigi stated strongly.</p><p>“Does that mean you plan to take Wado Ichimonji from me?” Zoro questioned as he placed his hand on the white sword.</p><p>“No, no, I don’t want the swords for myself! I just don’t want them to be used for evil.” Tashigi raised her hands in front of her to ward off the accusation.</p><p>“Hm?” Zoro’s eyes snapped to the sword his hand had just touched. Something felt ‘off’ about this sword. Pulling it from within the barrel Zoro looked over the sword. He unsheathed it and looked over the flame-like hamon pattern. This sword was different, it was special.</p><p>“Oh! That sword! I’ve seen it in my book!” Tashigi exclaimed as she pulled out a thick book from her back pocket. Flipping through the pages Tashigi stopped and glanced between the page and the sword for a second. “I was right! That’s ‘Sandai Kitetsu’! It’s a Grade sword, just like my ‘Shigure’! Mister, are you really selling this for only fifty thousand Beri? It’s worth at least one million!”</p><p>“I can’t sell that sword!” Ippon denied her as he shook his head.</p><p>“What? But why not?” Tashigi questioned clearly confused.</p><p>“It’s cursed.” Zoro stated as he held the blade up.</p><p>“So you know about it?” Ippon asked while staring at the blade nervously.</p><p>“No…I can just tell.” Zoro replied, though he seemed like he was barely paying attention to the other man.</p><p>“Well you’re right!” Ippon nodded with sweat beading on his forehead. “The Kitetsu are all fine swords, but from the start with the ‘Shodai Kitetsu’ they’ve carried a curse! Many a famous swordsman met their end after using one of the three Kitetsu! Now days, there’s no swordsman that will touch one of them!”</p><p>“I like it, so how much was it again? Fifty thousand, right?” Zoro smirked as he held the sword aloft.</p><p>“You fool! I said I can’t sell that sword! If you died it’d be like I killed you myself!” Ippon shouted at the green haired swordsman.</p><p>“Let’s test it then.” Zoro grinned at the sword. “My luck or this sword’s curse. Which is stronger?” With that he tossed the blade into the air and held his arm straight out to his side. The ‘Sandai Kitetsu’ spun on its descent, heading for Zoro’s arm.</p><p>“You fool! You’ll lose your arm! That sword’s edge is unparalleled!” Ippon warned while Tashigi held her hands over her mouth in worry. Zoro simply closed his eyes and waited.</p><p><em>‘Hehahahaha~’</em> Zoro ‘heard’ with his fledgling Observation. It almost sounded like the laughter of a mad man. He noticed it came with the same bloodlust he’d felt from the ‘Sandai Kitetsu’ as well. So the sword truly was cursed. How interesting.</p><p>The shocked and terrified Ippon and Tashigi watched as the cursed blade spun downwards. At the last moment, just as it looked like Zoro would lose his arm, the blade spun perfectly around the limb. The two watched the Grade Sword stab straight through the wooden floor all the way to the hilt.</p><p>“I’ll take it!” Zoro grinned viciously while both Tashigi and Ippon collapsed at what they’d just witnessed. “Now I just need one more.” He smiled as he pulled Kitetsu from the floor and sheathed it.</p><p>“Hang on! Just wait right there!” Ippon shouted as he rushed into the back of his shop. He returned a moment later with a sword on its own stand. “This is Yubashiri, one of the fifty Skillful Grade swords. I can personally attest to its sharpness. My shop might not be much, but this is the best sword you’ll find in Loguetown. I guarantee it!”</p><p>Zoro picked up the sword. Noting its lightness he unsheathed it to reveal a beautiful blade. The hamon was a perfect wave and the edge was insanely sharp. With a grin Zoro sheathed the sword.</p><p>“How much?” Zoro asked Ippon.</p><p>“Don’t worry about the money.” Ippon waved him off. “It’s been a very long time since I’ve seen a real swordsman. I’ll pray for your good fortune.”</p><p>“Hey, you, how much did you say swords like this were worth?” Zoro asked Tashigi. For some reason the woman was still on the ground.</p><p>“O-oh! Um, usually one million Beri to start.” Tashigi replied as she shook herself from the crazy experience of meeting this swordsman.</p><p>“How lucky.” Zoro chuckled as he pulled out the two million Beri he’d tucked away in his haramaki earlier. He placed the stacks onto the counter.</p><p>“Hey, I said you didn’t have to pay.” Ippon tried to deny the money.</p><p>“You better take that money!” Ippon’s wife, a slightly plump woman with long, curly auburn hair demanded. She then slapped the back of his head. “This is the biggest sale we’ve made in years!”</p><p>“You’ve done your job as shop keeper well. I’ve found two good swords thanks to you. It would dishonor me to not pay you. Take the money.” Zoro informed the man as he headed out of the shop with a backwards wave. Ippon and his wife picked up the money and started to take it into the back. When Ippon returned he noticed Tashigi just getting to her feet.</p><p>“You can leave now, you know? We’re closed for the rest of the day!” Ippon shooed the swordswoman out of his shop and flipped the sign to ‘Closed’. Tashigi blinked as she heard the doors lock behind her.</p><p>-With Luffy-</p><p>“Wow! So this is what the Pirate King saw when he died!” Luffy exclaimed as he stood on top of the execution platform. He looked out over the crowded plaza seeing all the people. Many of said people were looking and pointing at him curiously.</p><p>“Hey you! Get down from there!” A police officer yelled into a megaphone.</p><p>“Why?” Luffy questioned and chuckles could be heard through the nearby crowd.</p><p>“Because that execution platform belongs to the World Government, so get off of it!” The officer yelled at him again. He was then smashed across the head with a large, spiked iron mace and was left sprawled out on the ground.</p><p>“Now, now, no need to be so uptight officer.” A woman in a cloak said. The cloak was covered in stylized hearts and the woman’s head was topped with a white cowboy hat. The hat even had a large, decorative plume feather on the left side. Civilians panicked at seeing a police officer brutalized so casually. “I’ve been looking for you Luffy! It’s been a long time!”</p><p>Luffy tilted his head, wondering where he could have seen such a lady. He wasn’t the best at remembering names sometimes. He thought he remembered faces pretty well though. This ravenette woman wasn’t ringing any bells though. When in doubt Luffy fell back on his training, in this case, his Observation Haki. He rarely forgot a person’s ‘Voice’ if he’d met them for any real length of time. What he ‘heard’ made him grimace as it was indeed familiar.</p><p>“Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten my face?” The lady asked him.</p><p>“You’ve changed on the outside, but you’re just as rotten as ever on the inside, Alvida.” Luffy replied as he looked down at the female pirate.</p><p>“You do remember!” Alvida grinned at him. “I’ve tracked you down to make you mine, Luffy! I do love strong men after all.”</p><p>“No.” Luffy replied instantly and every man in the plaza face faulted all at once. How could any man just instantly reject such a beauty?!</p><p>“Ooh~ so callous and rough!” Alvida smirked while she whipped off her cloak revealing her new slim appearance. With a pair of striped capris, a white bikini top and a purple jacket, the female pirate was definitely showing off her new trim figure. “After I ate the Sube Sube no Mi, my body changed! You probably noticed my freckles are gone.”</p><p>“Yeah…I noticed a lot more than that was gone.” Luffy deadpanned.</p><p>A blast went off in the plaza, destroying the nearby fountain. A large chunk of the debris went sailing towards Alvida. The large chunk of stonework seemingly struck the woman. The next instant however the large fountain piece seemed to simply slip off her and slam into a nearby building.</p><p>“Well that was a little dangerous, don’t you think?” Alvida asked a group of cloaked men.</p><p>“With your Devil Fruit no attack can harm your skin, so you needn’t worry.” The lead man replied.</p><p>“Luffy!” Alvida called out to the straw-hatted young man. “If you’re really fit to be my man, then you certainly won’t lose to him. We teamed up just to find you!”</p><p>“Ever since the day I was blasted away, I’ve dreamed only of killing you!” The lead man exclaimed as he and his group tossed off their cloaks. The Buggy Pirates revealed themselves to the large plaza. Dozens of the civilians screamed in terror while the Buggy Pirates pulled out weapons and aimed them at the people.</p><p>“Oh, it’s just Buggy.” Luffy’s monotone reply wasn’t taken well by the Clown Pirate.</p><p>“I see you’re still the same cheeky punk as before!” Buggy roared at Luffy with sharp teeth.</p><p>“That won’t work.” Luffy intoned as he stepped backwards. Cabaji slammed into the execution platform with a set of bladed stocks.</p><p>“How did you?” Cabaji tried to question only for a bright light to pass through his shoulder. “Aaargh!” The Buggy swordsman cried out in pain as a smoking hole was put through him.</p><p>“Cabaji!” Buggy yelled out in anger at his subordinate’s injury.</p><p>“Get down.” Luffy ordered the other pirate as he punted him off the platform. Cabaji crashed onto the ground with a thump as he grabbed at his wounded shoulder.</p><p>“Oh my~” Alvida hummed in delight.</p><p>“You Straw Hat bastard! I’ll kill you for this!” Buggy threatened only for Luffy to stare him dead in the eye. The older pirate quickly found himself unable to speak. A pressure was building up in his head and he broke out into a flop sweat.</p><p>“You got away with your life last time we met.” Luffy’s eyes practically drilled holes into Buggy’s as he continued their stare down. “Yet you come to threaten me again? Why?”</p><p>“B-be-because y-you…” Buggy began but another bright blue-white beam suddenly pierced his shoulder. “OW!” The Clown Pirate cried out in pain as he collapsed to his knees and gingerly held his wounded shoulder.</p><p>“I’m about to set out for the Grand Line.” Luffy informed the older pirate. “Don’t get in my way, okay?”</p><p>-With Smoker and Tashigi-</p><p>“So that’s ‘Straw Hat’ Luffy, the man with the largest Bounty in all of the East Blue?” Smoker commented as he compared Luffy’s face to the wanted poster.</p><p>“Yes sir!” The Ensign next to him replied. “As ordered we have the plaza surrounded. We can move in at any time.”</p><p>“We were going to let the pirates fight among themselves. Then we’d move in and capture all of them.” Tashigi commented on their original plan. “But at this rate it doesn’t seem like that’s going to be a viable option. The power difference is too great.”</p><p>“Wait for my signal and then move in.” Smoker informed the Ensign. “I’ll deal with Straw Hat myself.”</p><p>“Yes sir!” The Ensign saluted and then rushed off to relay the orders.</p><p>-With the rest of the Crew-</p><p>“Oh.” Nami blinked at spotting her nakama. On her back was a large bag with all her clothing purchases inside.</p><p>“Hey.” Usopp greeted while holding up the front end of a huge fish. There was also a very large pack being carried in his left hand too.</p><p>“Nami-swan!” Sanji smiled brightly at seeing the orangette Navigator again.</p><p>“What’s up?” Zoro asked. All of his crewmates noticed his haramaki once again had three swords tucked into it.</p><p>“We need to get to the ship.” Nami informed the group as she pulled out her pocket barometer and showed it to them. “The air pressure has dropped substantially, almost too fast to be honest. These dark clouds are only the beginning of a major storm!”</p><p>“Well, that’s not good!” Usopp exclaimed only for a rumble of thunder to be heard. “Really not good!</p><p>“We need to get back to the ship then.” Sanji agreed.</p><p>“Where’s Luffy? Has anybody seen him?” Zoro questioned.</p><p>“He said he was going to see the execution platform.” Nami remembered. “That’s in the main plaza.”</p><p>“Isn’t the main plaza right over there?” Sanji questioned as he pointed towards the large crowd of people. The crew ran over to the edge of the crowd and saw Luffy standing on the execution platform. The Buggy Pirates were all staring up at him while pointing their flintlocks at the young man.</p><p>“Why is he ON the platform?!” Usopp demanded with his eyes bugging out.</p><p>A loud rumble of thunder shook the sky and the winds began to pick up even more. Everyone in the plaza shielded their eyes from the sudden harsh wind. Except for Luffy, he still stared into Buggy’s eyes. The older pirate felt like the straw-hatted young man was staring into his very soul.</p><p>“LUFFY! We need to go!” Nami yelled loudly. Hearing his Lover call out to him Luffy finally broke the stare down and looked her way.</p><p>“What?!” Luffy called back and this drew the eyes of everyone in the plaza to the Straw Hats.</p><p>“WE NEED TO GO! THERE’S A HUGE STORM COMING!” Nami yelled to him even as Marines started gathering their rifles and heading for the crew.</p><p>-With Smoker and Tashigi-</p><p>“Sir! It’s the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates!” A Marine exclaimed as he pointed at the group.</p><p>“I have eyes, Sailor!” Smoker snapped out as he flipped through the wanted posters and took note of each person’s Bounty.</p><p>“It’s him!” Tashigi suddenly yelled as she looked through a pair of binoculars. “Roronoa Zoro!”</p><p>-With Luffy-</p><p>“Alright!” Luffy called back to Nami. The Straw Hat Captain then took a deep breath before yelling. “I’M THE MAN THAT’LL BE KING OF THE PIRATES!”</p><p>Every person in the plaza felt their jaws drop. How could someone, anyone, make such a claim on the very execution platform where the last Pirate King had died? Smoker looked on with wide eyes.</p><p>“That smile…” The Marine Captain trailed off as his mind took him back to ‘that’ day. The day he’d witnessed the Pirate King’s execution. The day a man laughed and smiled in the face of his own death. The same smile that Luffy currently had on his face!</p><p>A bright bolt of lightning descended from the sky and struck Luffy dead on. People screamed at the loud thunder that followed and the intense bright light. When it cleared everyone saw ‘Straw Hat’, Monkey D. Luffy, sparking and still smiling widely. It was as if even Heaven itself couldn’t stop this young man! One man, with green hair and noticeably sharp teeth, stood transfixed and shaking at the sight of Luffy. He didn’t even hear the person next to him asking a question.</p><p>“Time to go!” Luffy grinned before his face went stone cold serious. A wave of pressure emanated from the pirate and slammed into the consciousness of everyone present. A moment later and people started to collapse. The civilians dropped to their knees, most of them unconscious or barely holding on. The Buggy Pirates, including Alvida, dropped like sacks of rocks and many were foaming at the mouth. Even the Marines surrounding the plaza collapsed and lay sprawled out on the ground.</p><p>‘Captain…Roger…” Was Buggy’s last thought as he hit the ground and slipped into the darkness of unconsciousness.</p><p>Luffy quickly zapped over to his nakama with a grin. Zoro snorted and shook his head at what they’d just witnessed. Sanji pulled out a cigarette and lit up, even as the rain began to fall. He needed this to deal with the crazy shit his Captain kept pulling. Usopp stared at Luffy bug eyed. The Gunman had no idea that Luffy could do that!</p><p>“Come on, you show off.” Nami grinned at Luffy before pecking his cheek.</p><p>“To the Merry!” Luffy ordered with a laugh. “Let’s set sail!” The Straw Hat Pirates quickly took off towards their ship.</p><p>-With Smoker and Tashigi-</p><p>“What the hell was that?!” Smoker growled as he held his head.</p><p>“I-I’m not s-sure.” Tashigi stuttered out. Her head was pounding and her legs wouldn’t stop shaking.</p><p>“Sir, m-most of o-our f-forces are unconscious!” One of the few conscious Marines stated.</p><p>“I can see that.” Smoker bit out. “Wake them up! I’m going after Straw Hat!” With that Smoker suddenly turned his legs into thick white smoke and blasted off. He flew over the streets in the direction the pirates had run. “I swear it on my name as the ‘White Hunter’. They will not leave this island!”</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Smoker is confused and angry! Tashigi is shook! Luffy got struck by lightning and smiled about it! People are freaking out! Now it’s a race to the Merry! Will Smoker stop the Straw Hats from leaving? Will a certain ‘father’ make his appearance? Maybe! Maybe not! Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Smoke vs Lightning, Dragon</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! Time to escape Loguetown! Will anyone get in the way? Will a certain someone show up to see Luffy off? Let’s head for the Grand Line!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 16 – Smoke vs Lightning, Dragon</strong>
</p><p>“We need to set sail as quickly as possible!” Nami exclaimed as the winds picked up and the rain came beating down.</p><p>The Straw Hat Pirates were rushing to the Going Merry as fast as possible. If they didn’t set sail soon the weather would get too bad to do so. As the crew booked it towards the docks, Luffy was keeping his Observation up to protect their backs. It was because of this that he felt the incoming ‘Voice’. Pretty strong and with an Iron Will, the ‘Voice’ was approaching rapidly from behind.</p><p>“Go ahead guys, I’ll catch up!” Luffy ordered with finality. Nami, Zoro, Sanji, and Usopp all stopped and turned to look at their Captain like he was crazy.</p><p>“Luffy? What’re you talking about?” Nami questioned her Lover, confused. “We need to go now!”</p><p>“He won’t let us.” Luffy remarked staring back the way they came. From above the roof of a tall building and speeding white object was flying down at them. “GO!” With looks of trust between them the four crewmates took off towards the ship as fast as possible.</p><p>The approaching enemy seemed to notice the Crew leaving. Two large plumes of white smoke shot from the main cloud and headed for his nakama. They were intercepted by a large wall of electricity forming between them and his Crew. The smoke clashed with the surging electricity for a bit before the smoke retreated. The billowing cloud fell to earth and reformed into a man. Luffy stared the man down as he stopped producing electricity.</p><p>“So, you’re ‘Straw Hat’ Luffy?” The white-haired man questioned. “The Pirate with the highest Bounty in East Blue.”</p><p>“That’s me.” Luffy nodded, his eyes not leaving the Marine’s.</p><p>“I’m Marine Captain, Smoker.” Smoker introduced himself. “Any Pirate that sets foot in my town has to face me.”</p><p>“I’m in a hurry to leave, rain check?” Luffy requested with a grin. His answer was Smoker’s arms turning into smoke and rushing towards him.</p><p>“White Blow!” Smoker yelled aiming to take Luffy down in one shot. One could imagine his surprise when his smoke-propelled fists were both caught in an iron grip. “How?! I’m smoke?”</p><p>“So you’re a Logia?” Luffy remarked as he held the fists with Armament-clad hands. “That’s rare, but I don’t have time, let’s do this some other day.”</p><p>“What?!” Smoker demanded. How much could this Rookie Pirate look down on him?! “That’s not your choice!” He saw a flash of blue-white light and then felt the full force of Luffy’s sandal-clad foot smash into his chest. It was only as he went rocketing through a wall and into an empty shop that Smoker realized that his wrists had been let go of.</p><p>“Captain Smoker!” A squad of approaching Marines exclaimed as they saw their CO kicked through a wall. The swordswoman leading the group drew her sword but Luffy needed to go.</p><p>“Electric Fence.” Luffy intoned and the wall of electricity reappeared between him and the Marines. The swordswoman skidded to a halt and felt all the hair on her body rise just from being so close to the electric wall. “Bye now!” Luffy smiled widely as he waved to the Marines. In a flash the Pirate Captain had zapped all the way to the other end of the street. He disappeared shortly after that around the corner. With the wall of electricity still standing between them the Marines couldn’t give chase without going through the side streets first.</p><p>“What’s Captain Smoker’s condition?” Tashigi yelled only for the man to emerge from the hole in the wall he’d been kicked through.</p><p>“I’m fine.” Smoker informed his subordinate as he looked at the wall of electricity. How the hell had Straw Hat done that? Smoker didn’t even have time to register the kick! In an instant he was crashing through the wall! He hadn’t even seen the Rookie move! “Continue pursuit! They’re NOT leaving this island!”</p><p>“Yes sir!” The Marines saluted and, in a stroke of luck, the wall of electricity died down a moment later. Smoker turned his legs into smoke and blasted off over the rooftops to try and cut Luffy off again.</p><p>-Luffy-</p><p>“Who are you?” Luffy questioned the tall man in the green cloak. The man’s face was hidden in the shadow of his hood, but a brief flash of lighting revealed a rugged face with a tattoo on the left side. The tribal looking tattoo went from the man’s jaw all the way up to his forehead.</p><p>“Pirate King, huh?” The man chuckled as they looked at each other. “Fine by me. If that’s your decision, then go.”</p><p>“What’re you talking about?” Luffy asked with a tilt of his head. This man was capable of hiding his ‘Voice’! That already had Luffy wary of him. He didn’t need to get into another fight right now. He needed to get to the Merry!</p><p>“What reason would there be to interfere with a man’s departure?” The cloaked man chuckled. Luffy side-eyed the man even as he walked past him. He then broke into a sprint when he heard the squad of Marines closing in. He rushed forward without looking back. His Observation picked up the Captain, Smokey or whatever, but even he stopped chasing Luffy for some reason.</p><p>“What’re you doing here?” Smoker demanded of the cloaked man. “Do you have some connection to Straw Hat?”</p><p>The cloaked man only grinned and remained silent. Tashigi and the other Marines looked between their Captain and the mysterious man. Smoker nearly bit through his cigars at being ignored. With a vein throbbing on his temple he pulled the large Jitte off his back.</p><p>“Answer me, Dragon!” Smoker demanded as he pointed his weapon at the cloaked man. He ignored the startled gasps from his subordinates. The rain was coming down in sheets now and the wind had started to howl.</p><p>Instead of answering, Dragon spread his arms out to his sides. The grin never leaving his face as the wind suddenly stilled. Then it picked back up with a noticeable green tint and blew through the area like a hurricane! The Marines were knocked off their feet. Marine caps flew off heads and some of his subordinates were even knocked back into the stone walls of nearby buildings. Smoker braced himself as much as possible against the wind. The blast of wind spread all throughout Loguetown. Signs over shops whipped wildly, litter and other light items were carried away by the green wind.</p><p>-Luffy-</p><p>Luffy had just arrived at the Merry when the gale passed through the docks with a howl. He steadied himself against the wind and held his hat to his head. A new ‘Voice’ appeared in his Observation for a moment. Luffy felt himself flinch slightly. Mihawk’s ‘Voice’ had been orders of magnitude greater than anything he’d ever ‘heard’ before. In this brief instance, this new ‘Voice’ gave him a very similar feeling. Just as fast as it appeared it was gone again.</p><p>“Luffy!” Nami tried to yell over the wind. Luffy barely heard her though. “We need to get out of here!”</p><p>“Set sail!” Luffy called out as the gangplank was pulled onto the ship. The green wind died down and the crew rushed to depart.</p><p>-Smoker-</p><p>Pulling his arm from where he’d protected his eyes from the gale, Smoker looked around for Dragon. Not seeing the cloaked man Smoker scoffed. This didn’t stop the hundred or more questions that were now bouncing around in his head though. What in the hell was the most wanted man in the world doing in Loguetown? Did he have some kind of connection to Straw Hat? If he did, then what was the connection? As these thoughts swirled around his mind Tashigi spoke to him.</p><p>“Captain Smoker sir, should we still pursue the Straw Hats?” Tashigi questioned her Superior.</p><p>“Of course!” Smoker called as he blasted forward in a cloud of smoke again. His subordinates were left to chase after him again. It turned out to be all for not though. The squad caught up to their Captain at the docks. They watched as the Straw Hat’s ship sailed away. The vessel had already cleared the worst part of the storm and was headed in the direction of Reverse Mountain. The Straw Hat Pirates were headed for the Grand Line!</p><p>“Captain, what should we do?” Tashigi awaited orders. Smoker stared at the ship getting smaller and smaller for a moment.</p><p>“Tashigi, we’re returning to base.” Smoker bit out with his fists clenched. “When we get there I’m calling Headquarters to assign another Captain to Loguetown. I’m going after Straw Hat!”</p><p>“Sir, we can’t even prepare a ship in this storm!” Tashigi warned as the rain was practically a waterfall at this point. Even standing next to each other they had to practically yell to be heard. The entire squad was soaked to the bone already.</p><p>“I’m aware of that, Petty Officer.” Smoker growled out. “It’ll take at least two days for another Captain to arrive at minimum. But as soon as they do I want to have a ship ready to sail! We’re going after them, and we’ll bring them in!”</p><p>“Yes sir!” Tashigi and the rest of the Squad saluted, even as they were deluged by the heavy rain and wild winds. The squad quickly returned to base to get dry and warm up. True to his word, Smoker was on the Transponder Snail before he even bothered to change out of his soaked clothing.</p><p>-Going Merry-</p><p>The crew of the Straw Hat Pirates was doing their best to sail out of the large storm that had engulfed Loguetown, the island the town was on, and the surrounding ocean. Under Nami’s instruction the Going Merry made a path through the storm waves and the wild winds. As they approached the edge of the storm the crew all sighed in relief as the heavy rain lightened and the winds began to calm down. Finally out of the danger of the storm Sanji brought out a spare barrel and placed it in the middle of the main deck.</p><p>“What’s up, Sanji?” Usopp asked as he watched Sanji.</p><p>“A little send-off ceremony, I think we should say something to mark the occasion.” Sanji replied with a grin.</p><p>“Yeah, let’s do it!” Luffy grinned brightly.</p><p>“I’m headed to the Grand Line to find the All Blue!” Sanji announced as he placed his heel on top of the barrel.</p><p>“I’m gonna be King of the Pirates!” Luffy placed his own heel on top of the barrel.</p><p>“The World’s Greatest Swordsman!” Zoro declared as his heel was added.</p><p>“I’m going to draw a map of the entire World!” Nami smiled as she placed her heel on the barrel too.</p><p>“To become a Brave Warrior of the Sea!” Usopp proclaimed as he set his heel atop the barrel.</p><p>“To the Grand Line!” Luffy called out. As one the crew of five raised their legs and brought their heels down. The barrel collapsed under the force and the crew cheered!</p><p>A few minutes later and Usopp spotted a light in the gloom of the receding storm. The crew turned to face it and Nami smiled. Noticing the smile Luffy asked hi Navigator about it.</p><p>“What’s the smile for, Nami?” Luffy tilted his head.</p><p>“That Lighthouse is one of the guide points.” Nami smiled at the whole crew. “It points towards the Grand Line!”</p><p>“Really?!” Luffy looked excited, he practically had sparkles in his eyes. Nami couldn’t help but giggle at her Lover.</p><p>“Yep!” Nami grinned. “From the Southwestern shores of Loguetown the currents all head towards a single point, Reverse Mountain, the entrance to the Grand Line! The lighthouse is the first guide point to show the way! After that it’s only a matter of following the currents until you get there!”</p><p>“Awesome!” Luffy yelled with his fists in the air.</p><p>“Sounds like fairly easy sailing at least.” Sanji commented and Nami nodded in agreement.</p><p>“Shouldn’t have to do much except ride the current to the entrance.” Nami explained. “The entire trip from Loguetown to the entrance should only take about four hours as we sail the currents. That’ll give us all time to change out of our soaked clothes. We can even relax a bit now that the storm has cleared up.”</p><p>It was true; the rain had finally stopped as they cleared the storm. The clouds had started to thin and the sun was peeking out. With smiles all around Usopp, Sanji, and Zoro went to change first. While Nami maintained their course with Luffy until Usopp and Sanji got back since they were the only other crewmates who had any real navigation skills. The three men didn’t take long to change, Sanji started to prepare a nice, if slightly late, lunch for the Crew. Usopp manned the rudder while Zoro went to train for a bit.</p><p>“Follow me, Luffy~” Nami grinned at her Lover as she headed for the Captain’s Quarters. She spent enough nights sleeping in Luffy’s bed that she even kept a few changes of clothes in his Quarters now. Luffy grinned at her tone, knowing what she was hinting at from experience.</p><p>The two entered his Quarters and locked the door behind them. Nami was quick to pull off her wet shirt and bra. Luffy dropped his cardigan and stopped to admire Nami’s lovely breasts. The orangette smirked and gave him a wink as she undid her skirt and let it drop to the floor. Seeing her Lover’s eyes immediately drop down to take in the newly exposed skin Nami giggled. With a teasing purr she kicked off her sandals and then turned around.</p><p>“Wow~” Luffy grinned as Nami showed off her booty. The Navigator was lovely in every way. A pretty face, bountiful chest, thin waist, trim stomach, wide flaring hips, thick thighs, and longs legs. With the amazing ass that Luffy was currently admiring to match the rest of her assets, Nami was truly a beauty to be envied. His Lover wasn’t done with her teasing however; she bent forward at the waist, practically thrusting her cheeks out, and pulled her panties off. Luffy felt like he might be drooling but didn’t pay it any attention.</p><p>“You should hurry Luffy~” Nami teased with a wink as she turned to face him. Seeing his eyes move up and down her naked form still gave her such a thrill. With a giggle she turned and put a sway in her hips as she walked towards the private bathroom. She only made it three steps before she heard Luffy’s shorts hit the floor. On her fourth step she was scooped into Luffy’s arms and carried towards the bathroom. Nami wrapped her arms around Luffy’s neck and pulled him into a kiss.</p><p>Entering the bathroom Nami distractedly turned the shower on as she and Luffy made out. Feeling his hands roaming, teasing, and playing with her brought out a throaty moan from the orangette. Luffy groaned as Nami’s body was pressed flush against his. Her soft curves pressed against his chest felt amazing. Pulling back from her Lover’s lips for a moment, Nami checked the shower. Finding it at a suitable temperature she pulled Luffy in with her. Any remaining chill from wearing her soaked clothes disappeared quickly under the warm water and the rising passion.</p><p>“Nami~” Luffy breathed heavily as his lips descended to her neck and began to leave kisses. Nami was very grateful for the contraception Dr. Nako had given her before they’d left Cocoyashi. Three months-worth would easily let them get to islands with pharmacies so she could get more. Though it would be better for the crew to find a Doctor that would want to join up with a Crew of Peacemain Pirates and take care of their medical needs. But as long as she was protected, Nami and Luffy could indulge in their ‘Honeymoon Phase’ to their hearts’ content. The Straw Hat Pirates had dreams to complete first. But as soon as Luffy was the Pirate King and the rest of their dreams became reality…well, she now had a second dream to fulfill. A few half-siblings for Nojiko’s probable child would be a good start.</p><p>“Luffy!” Nami gasped as he picked her up and held her against the wall. She wrapped her long legs around his waist and kissed him deeply as they became one again. Before she lost the ability of higher thinking, Nami decided it might be a good idea to find her Lover another woman or two. While Luffy wasn’t pushy in their relationship, he could easily wear Nami out at night, so dividing up the task of bedding Luffy to satisfaction just made sense. A strangled cry of rapture tore from her throat as Luffy began to relentlessly hit a sweet spot inside her. Her thinking vanished entirely as Luffy’s lips met hers and swallowed her sounds of pleasure.</p><p>-Hours Later-</p><p>“Stupid Captain…” Sanji pouted as he saw the satisfied looks on Nami and Luffy’s faces. The Crew had enjoyed a nice lunch about an hour ago and now they were all preparing for Reverse Mountain.</p><p>The way Nami had explained it, showing them the map to the Grand Line she’d stolen from Buggy, the intense currents near the entrance actually went <strong>up</strong> the mountain! So now the Navigator was making sure they were perfectly in the center of the current. She was taking no chances that they might be off and end up slamming into the Red Line. With the way the currents had been gaining strength during the trip they all agreed it was better to make the changes now. It was already getting harder to move the rudder at all. By the time they were ‘locked’ into the current the whip-staff would probably break if they tried to change course.</p><p>It wasn’t long before the Straw Hats could see the large mountain. The currents had picked up considerably now and the rudder had been locked at Nami’s instruction. There would be no chance of their course altering now. They were going to ride the center of the current and shoot straight to the top of the <strong>MASSIVE</strong> mountain before them. As the Going Merry got closer and their speed continued to increase they saw the path they needed to take. There was an absolutely enormous arch over the only path up Reverse Mountain. A Galleon could easily have sailed under the arch without worry of their crow’s nest even coming close to grazing it.</p><p>“Here we go!” Luffy cheered loudly, his wide grin on his face. The crew all braced themselves as Merry rode the current closer and closer. Nami’s adjustments had been spot on and their ship went straight up the middle of the canal. The caravel raced up the waterway, climbing higher and higher into the sky. The sheer speed they were moving at forcing the crew to hang on to Merry for dear life as they sailed ever upwards.</p><p>Then they suddenly crested the top of Reverse Mountain!</p><p>Merry was launched into the air. They were so high that they saw clouds below them! The air was chilly this high up and Nami shivered slightly. Luffy’s arm was quick to wrap around her shoulders and pull her close. The crew all admired the amazing few for the few brief moments they got to enjoy it. Merry came down and threw up a large spray of water before being dragged down the even larger channel and into the Grand Line. The caravel raced down the mountain and into the dense mists near the base.</p><p>“Wooohooo!” Luffy cheered with his arms raised high. Even Nami was laughing at successfully making it into the Grand Line.</p><p>“Does anybody hear that?” Usopp questioned as they sailed down the waterway at speed.</p><p>“Hear what?” Sanji questioned only for a deep, loud noise to ring out through the air.</p><p>“What is that?!” Zoro grimaced as he held his hands over his ears. The sound was getting louder the further down the mountain they got. But the mist was too thick to see through. The sound stopped for a moment and the crew was confused. As they approached the base of Reverse Mountain something dark in the mist caught their attention.</p><p>“Is that a mountain?!” Usopp yelled in terror.</p><p>Indeed, there appeared to be another mountain at the base of the canal! It was so large that it couldn’t possibly be anything else! Then the incredibly loud sound came again. The Straw Hats covered their ears from the noise, but this time Nami recognized the sound.</p><p>“Is that a whale?!” Nami screamed and all of the crew’s eyes widened when the mists cleared enough to reveal that, yes, the ‘mountain’ was indeed a whale! A whale so large that they could barely comprehend its sheer size! A whale that they were on a direct collision course with!</p><p>“The rudder! Unlock the rudder! Turn the ship!” Sanji yelled as he, Zoro, Usopp, and Luffy all ran to the whip-staff and unlocked it. All four put their backs into turning the rudder, even against the fast current. Little by little the Going Merry turned to port. As they continued to sail closer and closer to the mountain of a whale they grew increasingly frantic. It was only when Merry hit the bottom of the canal and sailed off to port at a forty five degree angle that the crew breathed a sigh of relief.</p><p>“That was too close…” Nami exhaled in relief. The Going Merry was sailing along beside the behemoth whale with a good amount of distance between them. The whale descended to the ocean’s surface from its upright position. This kicked up large waves that sent Merry rocking.</p><p>“What kind of whale is this?” Sanji wondered as they all held onto the ship as the waves rocked against it.</p><p>“It’s insanely huge.” Zoro commented as they were able to see almost its’ full length as it floated at the surface. “You could mistake it for an island.”</p><p>“I wonder why it’s at the bottom of Reverse Mountain.” Usopp questioned as he looked the massive beast over.</p><p>“Why does it have all those huge scars all over its head?” Luffy pondered and the crew all took in the immense amount of scar tissue that covered the ‘snout’ of the huge whale.</p><p>“What could do that to a whale this big?” Nami breathed out. Everyone had heard the tales and legends of the monsters that made the Grand Line their home. But to see what almost looked like predation marks on such an immense creature, it really brought those stories to mind.</p><p>With a drawn out whine the huge whale began to open its jaws. The Straw Hats all marveled at the sight of seeing the whale move more. After all this was their first foray into the Grand Line and seeing the creatures that lived here. It was only a few seconds later that the Crew realized something else.</p><p>“Wait, are we sailing backwards?” Zoro questioned as the forward motion of the ship slowed and then seemed to reverse.</p><p>“No, we’re not sailing backwards, we’re being drawn in!” Sanji yelled as the whale opened its mouth completely. Drawing in tens of thousands of gallons of water and their ship along with it!</p><p>“No! No giant whale! Don’t eat us! Please!” Usopp wailed with tears practically making a fountain from his eyes. “We don’t even taste good, I swear!”</p><p>“Hey! Hey! Stop it! Stop it right now whale!” Luffy yelled at the creature even as the Merry was sucked into its jaws.</p><p>“Luffy!” Nami screamed as she grabbed onto him. Luffy’s arms wrapped around her waist and shoulders as they travelled down the whale’s chasm-like throat and into its stomach. The light of day vanishing as the whale closed its mouth behind them.</p><p>“I’ll get us out of here guys!” Luffy yelled to his crew. “Even if I have to blast a hole through the whale, I’ll get us out! Just hang on!” The Straw Hats all grabbed onto Merry as they made the journey down into the depths of the beast.</p><p>None of them could have expected what they’d see next in the dark innards of the whale.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Well, Luffy’s a tough cookie, as Smoker found out! Being a Logia doesn’t mean as much when you’re fighting a Haki User. Also, Luffy showed off another Technique! His Electric Fence blocks off pathways and keeps enemies at bay for as long as he’s powering it! It can even last for several moments after he leaves if he charges it enough first!</strong>
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  <strong>Dragon made his brief appearance in Loguetown to see Luffy off. Now Smoker is even MORE confused and angry! He’s now on Luffy’s trail like a bloodhound!</strong>
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  <strong>But now the Straw Hats have met Laboon! In probably one of the worst ways, but hey, it’ll all work out, right?</strong>
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  <strong> Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Laboon and Crocus</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! We meet our Island Whale Friend! Plus old Crocus and get what is needed to travel the Grand Line! Also a mysterious pair of people shows up!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 17 – Laboon and Crocus</strong>
</p><p>“Huh… Didn’t expect this…” Luffy blinked after the crews’ ride down the massive whale’s throat.</p><p>“Are we still alive?” Nami asked as she looked around.</p><p>“I don’t feel dead.” Zoro replied, “Maybe this is the afterlife?”</p><p>“We were just swallowed by that whale, right?” Sanji questioned the whole event now. This wasn’t surprising, considering the Going Merry was slowly drifting closer to an island. They also appeared to be outside again…somehow.</p><p>“Is this some kind of dream?” Usopp wondered as he looked around the tranquil area.</p><p>“Maybe?” Zoro scratched the back of his head. There was a house on the small island. It even had a fold-up chair set up on the grass out front.</p><p>“Then how do we wake up?” Nami looked at Usopp and Zoro flatly.</p><p>“It’s a Mystery Island!” Luffy declared, his excitement beginning to rise.</p><p>“I’m not so fond of the unknown after what just happened.” Usopp gulped.</p><p>“Something seems off with the clouds.” Sanji mentioned, looking at the sky.</p><p>“Hey, you’re right.” Usopp agreed. “The birds aren’t moving either.” The water in front of them was thrown high into the air. A giant squid emerged from the depths with its tentacles flailing.</p><p>“What the hell?!” The crew yelled in unison. Zoro, Nami, and Usopp drew their weapons while Sanji raised his right leg. Luffy was about to fry the squid when he ‘heard’ a strong ‘Voice’ from the island. Before the Straw Hats could attack, three harpoons were launched from the house. All three weapons found their mark and the squid was slain instantly.</p><p>“Now what?!”  Nami demanded at the sudden change of the situation. She was already getting sick of the Grand Line!</p><p>“Someone’s there!” Usopp noted as he trained his pistols on the front door.</p><p>With the sound of grunts the rope was yanked back towards the house. From within the building a tough looking old man stepped into the light. The top of his head was bald, but he had long white hair past his shoulders, growing from the back of his head. A matching white beard, seemingly split to point both left and right, was on his chin.  He was wearing a red shirt with green and yellow designs on it, blue shorts, glasses sat on his fairly large nose, while his left arm had a few bracelets on it. The strangest part of the old man was that he seemed to have flower petals growing out of his head, separating the bald top from the white hair beneath the petals.</p><p>“Who the hell?” Needless to say the entire crew was even more confused now.</p><p>The giant squid the old man had harpooned was still floating between the small island and their ship. The crew tensed as their eyes met the old man’s. The elder’s gaze almost felt like it was seeing straight through him, as if looking into their very souls. The old man started to walk to the right, not breaking eye contact with the Straw Hats. With every second that passed, the intensity of the old man seemed to grow. Then he simply sat down and opened a newspaper; the crew almost face-faulted at the action.</p><p>“What the hell, old man?” Sanji yelled at the sudden shift in mood. The old man tilted his head their way casually.</p><p>“Are you trying to pick a fight?” Usopp yelled at him, both pistols trained on the man. The old man's eyes snapped open furiously, and the Straw Hats all felt a wave of intensity pass through them. Except they all recognized this sensation! This old man knew Haki! He was directing his strength towards them as a burst of Armament! Luffy had shown them this trick before, too!</p><p>“Put those down, or someone will die.” The old man spoke after a few seconds of intense staring. His rougher voice was calm as he spoke to the crew.</p><p>“Oh and just who would that be?” Sanji questioned, he was already prepared to leap towards this old man if he turned out to be a threat.</p><p>“Me.” The old man stated, almost sending the crew face first into the deck from the deadpan delivery.</p><p>“Damn it, old man!” Sanji yelled at the old man casually reading his newspaper, “He’s almost as bad as Zeff.” The blonde cook ground out.</p><p>“Calm down Sanji.” Luffy chuckled at his annoyed Cook, “Hey old man! Do you know where we are? Who are you?”</p><p>The old man’s eyes snapped open again, another burst of Armament sent their way. After a moment the man spoke. “Isn't it polite to introduce yourselves first?”</p><p>“Oh…right, manners and stuff. I'm…” Luffy rubbed the back of his head as he started to introduce himself.</p><p>“My name is Crocus.” The old man cut Luffy off, “I'm the Lighthouse Keeper of the Twin Capes. I'm 71. My sign is Gemini.”</p><p>“He didn’t let me finish…” Luffy chuckled while the rest of them gained eye twitches.</p><p>“As for where you are? You’re barging into my private resort. Does it look like we're in a rat's belly?” Crocus questioned them with a raised eyebrow.</p><p>“So we really were eaten?” Usopp cringed as he looked around, “But this doesn't look like the inside of a whale's belly. Is everything painted on?”</p><p>“I don't want to be digested!” Nami exclaimed as she looked over the edge of the Merry into what was now clearly stomach acid.</p><p>Crocus's eyes snapped open furiously again. But this time his projected Armament was brushed aside by a much greater force. The old man felt the hairs on his neck and arms rise as the Conqueror’s Haki washed over him from the straw-hatted young man.</p><p>“That’s about enough of that.” Luffy stared directly into Crocus’ eyes.</p><p>“Haven't you ever heard of a running gag?” Crocus grumbled in disappointment.</p><p>“THAT WAS A GAG?!” The rest of the crew yelled at him.</p><p>Crocus motioned off to the side, “There's the exit, unless you’d rather go out the back end.” Turning to look the Straw Hats found that there was indeed a giant metal door on the side of the painted sky.</p><p>“Why is there a door on a whale?” Zoro couldn't help but ask.</p><p>“What the hell is even going on anymore?” Nami exhaled heavily. She was really getting tired of the constant shifts and surprises today.</p><p>“Did you do all of this?” Usopp questioned Crocus as he gestured from the door to the painted stomach. “It's painted and lighted, all on the inside of a whale's stomach! What the hell?!”</p><p>“Call it a doctor's playful mind. It's a hobby.” Crocus responded lackadaisically.</p><p>“What are you even doing in here?!” Nami yelled at him.</p><p>"Let's just get out of here." Sanji muttered as he pinched the bridge of his nose, “I need a smoke.”</p><p>Suddenly the ‘sea’ began to shake and roil sending waves up into the air.</p><p>“What now?!” Nami cried out as she struggled to keep her footing.</p><p>“Back at it already, Laboon?” Crocus sighed as he looked upwards.</p><p>“Hey look!” Usopp yelled, “That island is a ship, and it's made of metal! That must mean that wood will eventually dissolve in this stomach acid!”</p><p>“Who is Laboon? What's happening, old man?!” Zoro yelled at Crocus.</p><p>“Laboon is the name of this whale.” Crocus looked calm despite the rolling waves of stomach acid. The old man looked down as he sighed, “He's ramming his head into the Red Line, just like he's been doing for the last forty years!” The Straw Hats all looked shocked and confused at this revelation.</p><p>“Those scars!” Nami gasped in realization, “Its head was full of scars! Did they all come from ramming into the Red Line?!”</p><p>“Is he trying to kill this giant whale from the inside?!” Usopp questioned confused.</p><p>“The whale isn't our responsibility!” Zoro stated firmly, “We just need to get out!”</p><p>While they were speaking Crocus dived into the churning waves of acid and began to swim.</p><p>“What did he just do?!” Nami cried out in shock, “He jumped right in! He's going to get digested!”</p><p>Nami’s concerns proved to be unfounded as Crocus easily reached a ladder that led up to a large platform. The old man quickly scaled the ladder and started doing something on the platform. The most notable thing on the platform was a pair of large metal doors and whatever it was that Crocus was messing with.</p><p>-Behind the doors inside Laboon-</p><p>Two rather strange-looking individuals were standing with their backs to the metal doors.</p><p>“Alright!” The male of the pair called out, his tone slightly effeminate. He had red-orange hair and green clothes, and was wearing a golden crown on his head. Two stylized ‘9’s were drawn on his face, directly below his eyes. "Our infiltration has been successful, Miss Wednesday. Behind this door lies the stomach, and likely that old man. We must eliminate him! Everything is for this whale!”</p><p>“Yes, Mr. Nine!” The female was a beautiful, slim and curvy woman with blue hair in a ponytail. The blue locks fell down to her, rather nice, butt and her dark brown eyes were alight with intelligence. Her shirt was a spaghetti-strap with concentric circles on it. One large set on her stomach while two more were on each of her buxom breasts. The top was obviously meant to catch the eyes of others. She also had a beige coat with a furry collar over her shoulders. “This whale is a precious sweet honey for our town!” Both of them held rather large guns in one hand and, for some reason, had their pinkies extended.</p><p>“Ready, Miss Wednesday? We'll open the door with a 'Three, two, one baby!' Don't let down your guard!" Mr. Nine told her.</p><p>"Roger, Mr. Nine! I'm ready at any time!" She replied firmly.</p><p>Neither of them expected for both of the large metal doors to be opened suddenly!</p><p>“You two, again?!” Crocus roared at the stunned duo. The old man grabbed them both by their clothes and flung them off the platform.</p><p>"Oh no, Miss Wednesday, we're going to land in the acid sea!" Mr. Nine screamed in terror. The duo plunging towards the rolling waves of stomach acid.</p><p>“Who’re those guys?” Luffy questioned curiously.</p><p>“No idea.” Nami shook her head.</p><p>"Should we try and help those two weirdoes?" Zoro asked while pointing at the two idiots rapidly approaching the acid sea.</p><p>“I’ll grab one of them.” Luffy shrugged and zapped over to the falling duo. He reappeared in a bright spark and scooped the woman into his arms. Another bright spark and he disappeared again. The next thing Miss Wednesday knew she was being set on her feet on the deck of the caravel.</p><p>“What just happened?” The bluenette asked in confusion. She felt her hair standing on end and her clothes seemed to be full of static. How had she gotten over here?!</p><p>“Great job, Captain!” Sanji praised Luffy as his visible eye appeared heart-shaped as he looked at the lovely lady.</p><p>“Save me too!” Mr. Nine cried out as he flailed about in the acid sea.</p><p>“Tsk, save yourself.” Sanji turned away from the flailing man without a care.</p><p>“At least throw him a rope, Sanji!” Usopp yelled at the Cook while tossing a line to the orange-haired man. Mr. Nine grabbed the rope and Usopp put his improved strength to work as he hauled the man in.</p><p>They all heard the air-shaking sound of Laboon’s roaring furiously reverberate through the stomach. Most held their ears from the sound. It was enough to feel the vibrations in their bones! Then it all just seemingly stopped. The stomach calmed down, and the acid waves stopped roiling. In just a few moments, the entire acid sea was back to being calm and placid.</p><p>“Is it over?” Nami asked tentatively, “Maybe we can get out of here now while Laboon is calm?” The orangette Navigator was leaning into Luffy’s side with his right arm around her waist.</p><p>“Hopefully, but first, what do we do with these two?” Zoro looked over at the two agents, Miss Wednesday standing as she smoothed out her hair, while Mr. Nine lay on the deck soaked from his dunk in the stomach acid, “Who are you two anyway?”</p><p>“Mr. Nine…these are Pirates!” Miss Wednesday whispered to her partner while leaning away from Sanji, who was seemingly unable to take his heart-shaped eyes off of her. Mr. Nine scrambled to his feet before he leaned in to whisper back.</p><p>“Yes…I see that…Miss Wednesday! But maybe if we talk to them…they'll understand?” Mr. Nine was clearly quite shaken up from his encounter with Laboon’s stomach acid.</p><p>“You thugs are still skulking around here?" Crocus sounded very angry as he, somehow, leapt from the acid sea and up onto the Merry, “While I draw breath, you shall never harm Laboon!”</p><p>“I’m confused.” Luffy admitted and Nami couldn’t help but giggle at her Lover.</p><p>“Even if you say so, we can't leave!” Miss Wednesday retorted.</p><p>“Taking down this whale is our mission!” Mr. Nine shot back at Crocus. “We won't let you interfere with our whaling mission this time!”</p><p>“So are they bad guys?” Luffy tilted his head.</p><p>“Seems like they might be.” Zoro shrugged, his right hand moving towards his swords.</p><p>“What’re they planning to do without those big guns of theirs?” Usopp questioned and both agents flinched as they realized they’d dropped their weapons into the acid sea.</p><p>“Huh,” Luffy shrugged, “Usopp tie him up. Sanji set up some snacks for our other guest.”</p><p>“Yes Captain!” Sanji practically noodled his way into the kitchen. He knew he’d picked a good man to follow as Captain!</p><p>“Hey, what about-” Mr. Nine didn’t get to finish his sentence as he felt the barrel of Usopp’s pistol against the back of his head.</p><p>“Hands, now.” Usopp demanded and Mr. Nine broke into a flop sweat as he shakily put his hands behind his back to be tied. The orange-haired man was quickly tied up and then sat on the deck.</p><p>“Umm, thank you?” Miss Wednesday smiled shakily as the blonde man returned with snacks and tea. The green-haired man placed a table down while the apparent Captain brought chairs from what must be the dining area.</p><p>“Crocus, join us.” Luffy smiled at the old man, “I’ve got a lot of questions!”</p><p>In only a few short moments the Straw Hat crew, Miss Wednesday, and Crocus were all sitting down and partaking of Sanji’s snacks and tea. Miss Wednesday had commented on the delicious taste and Sanji had twirled around in joy.</p><p>“Laboon is an Island Whale.” Crocus explained as they all waited for the sedated Laboon to rise out of the ocean, “It's the largest whale species in the world, and it normally only lives in West Blue. These guys here-” he gestured towards the tied-up Mr. Nine and then Miss Wednesday, “Come from a nearby town. They've been trying for nearly a year to kill Laboon for his meat. Laboon would probably feed their greedy bellies for two or three years.” The old man glared at both agents, both of whom flinched back at the man’s harsh look, “But they won't succeed. As long as I draw breath, they won't hurt this whale!”</p><p>“But why does Laboon keep pounding his head on the Red Line? What is he trying to do?” Nami questioned confused on why the massive whale was hurting himself.</p><p>“Laboon came through Reverse Mountain with a certain friendly Pirate crew. He was really young back then. You could have fit him on a dinghy.” Crocus smiled as he reminisced, remembering how the Pirates would often ride Laboon while waving flagons of booze around and laughing, “They had been traveling together for a couple months by then. Laboon had gotten separated from the rest of his pod and had come to see those Pirates as his family. But the Grand Line was even scarier back then than it is now. Their ship had been damaged by Reverse Mountain, so they stayed here for almost a year while they repaired it. We became great friends during that time. When the Pirates left to continue on their trip, they left Laboon here with me, promising to come back for him after they made it through the Grand Line. Laboon understood and waited patiently for three years for them to come back as promised. Then he waited four, and then five.” He shook his head, “That was fifty years ago. He still thinks his friends are coming back.” The old man finished quietly, drawing a gasp from Nami and a few others. Miss Wednesday looked rather shocked and saddened at the story.</p><p>“This waterway is cool! Why did you build it inside a whale?” Usopp questioned as the island ship and the Merry sailed through the large gates in Laboon’s side.</p><p>“Laboon is too huge. I'm a doctor, but even I can’t treat him from outside!” Crocus replied to the Gunman.</p><p>“A Doctor?” Luffy grinned widely, “Do you want to join my cr-”</p><p>“No, you idiot. Who would look after Laboon?” Crocus cut the young Captain off with a snort, “Besides, I'm too old for that shit. That's a young man's adventure.”</p><p>“Hey, the sky!” Luffy ignored the harsh denial as he craned his neck to look up at the blue sky.</p><p>“So, what are we going to do with these idiots?" Zoro asked, pointing to the two agents. Mr. Nine was still tied up and sitting on the deck of the Merry.</p><p>“Eh, leave him tied up for now. She seems compliant enough, so he’s fine where he is. But I don't want them trying to hurt the whale again.” Luffy stared at both agents with a stone-cold gaze. Miss Wednesday gave a strained smile while Mr. Nine blanched and scooted back against the nearest wall. Nami noticed something that had fallen from the crown-wearing man’s pocket. It was some kind of glass bauble on a leather band. She picked it up and examined it curiously. It sort of looked like a compass needle suspended on a string inside the glass.</p><p>“You should just toss them overboard.” Crocus glared at both of them, getting sweat to bead on their foreheads, “But that’s not my call to make. These idiots have been trying for years to kill Laboon. But I'll never let them." The gangplank was lowered from Merry and they all disembarked. Luffy dragged Mr. Nine along while Miss Wednesday was being watched by Zoro.</p><p>“So, he's been waiting for fifty years? They've kept him waiting a long time.” Luffy commented as he relaxed and laid in the grass near Crocus’ Lighthouse. Nami lay next to him with an arm around her waist, while she looked over the strange item she had ‘liberated’ from Mr. Nine.</p><p>“This is the Grand Line.” Sanji snorted, as he took a drag from his cigarette, “Those guys said they'd be back in a couple years. It's been fifty. That's all the answer you need.” The Cook exhaled the smoke, “They're dead. He'll be waiting here for the rest of his life.”</p><p>“That’s too sad.” Usopp shook his head, looking at the large whale.</p><p>“I'm afraid that reality is even crueler than that. A long time ago, news reached me from a reliable source that those Pirates had failed. They escaped the Grand Line.” Crocus rubbed at his eyes sadly.</p><p>“What!” Nami exclaimed angrily, “And they just abandoned Laboon here?! How cruel could they be?!” Having actual nakama of her own for the first time in her life had definitely changed her. She was seething with rage for Laboon’s sake, “How could they just leave their nakama behind!” Nami exhaled as Luffy pulled her closer, a moment later she came to a startling realization, “Wait a minute! They would have had to cross the Calm Belt to escape the Grand Line!”</p><p>“That's right. That's the only reason their fate is uncertain.” Crocus confirmed with a nod, “But even if they're alive, they'll never come back here. The seasons, the climates, the ocean currents, even the air currents! Everything about this place is an unpredictable nightmare! This is an ocean that will <strong>break</strong>everyone trying to sail it! The weak of heart, those who would risk their lives on the Calm Belt rather than stay a moment longer, are all devoured by this sea!”</p><p>“So they fled, caring more about their lives than promises made.” Sanji shook his head.</p><p>“Then they did abandon Laboon!” Usopp roared, “And even after fifty years, he still believes in those bastards?! That's way too cruel!”</p><p>“Why don’t you tell him?” Nami questioned the old man, “He can understand, can't he? Why would you keep it from him?”</p><p>“Why do you think he roars and hits his head on the Red Line?” Crocus asked her with a morose tone, “I did tell him. I told him everything. But he won't listen. He's convinced this rock face is the only thing keeping him from his friends. He refuses to accept the truth.” He looked down, “But after all these decades…if he accepts it, he'll lose his reason for having waited for so long. He has no way home… and even if he did, he has no home to go back to. He'd never be able to find his pod, if they’d even accept him back after so long.” Crocus kept a stiff upper lip, but it was clear that he was holding back tears as he stared up at Laboon. The Island Whale was simply floating quietly with his head pointed straight up, “Look at those scars on his head. If he keeps ramming his head on the Red Line, he'll surely die. We've been together for fifty years. I can't abandon him, even if they broke their promise to me too.”</p><p>“Luffy?” Nami questioned her Lover as he removed his arm from her waist and stood up. The Captain walked towards the edge of the land and stared at the enormous form of Laboon. With a sudden look everyone at the Twin Capes felt their bodies tremble slightly. Laboon’s massive eye moved to look at Luffy after the blast of Conqueror’s Haki that slammed into his senses.</p><p>“Laboon!” Luffy roared out loudly. “I’m Monkey D. Luffy! I make you this promise here and now! We’ll return to this place once we sail around the Grand Line! If, by chance, we happen to find any of your old friends along the way, I <strong>WILL</strong> bring them back here to you! So until we come back here to see you again, never hurt yourself ever! You’re <strong>OUR </strong>nakama now! I <strong>NEVER</strong> break a promise to my nakama! We <strong>WILL</strong> see each other again!” The waves of Haki settled down a moment after Luffy stopped speaking.</p><p>“Bwooo.” Laboon’s massive eye started to tear up.</p><p>“This guy…” Crocus’ eyes were wide as he looked on at what Luffy had done.</p><p>Laboon, on the other hand, threw his head back and let out the happiest cry Crocus had heard from him in decades. The old Lighthouse Keeper couldn’t stop a few tears from escaping as Laboon chirped happily while Luffy laughed along with the Island Whale.</p><p>“Usopp! Get the big brush!” Luffy yelled to his Gunman.</p><p>“What? Why?” Usopp questioned, even as he headed for the Going Merry.</p><p>“We need to seal our promise, of course!” Luffy laughed and everyone at Twin Capes, barring Mr. Nine, smiled at the scene. Even Miss Wednesday’s eyes were bright and warm as she watched on.</p><p>-Later-</p><p>“So…big…” Usopp panted as he lay next to his largest paintbrush, more like a staff fashioned into a brush really. Painting such a massive surface took so much energy and time!</p><p>“Well, we’re out of paint now, but it looks awesome!” Luffy cheered as Laboon now sported the Straw Hat Jolly Roger on his he snout. The symbol of their promise also marked Laboon as their nakama! Laboon chirped happily as he flopped his large tail and sent up a spray of ocean water. “Don’t go scuffin’ up our promise, alright?” Luffy laughed and Laboon gave a chirp that sounded like agreement.</p><p>“How could I <em>not</em> fall in love with him?” Nami giggled to herself as she pulled out her map and compass. She needed to plot out their course so they could leave the Twin Capes soon.</p><p>Miss Wednesday and Mr. Nine were sitting off to the side of the group -Mr. Nine still tied up- the two were whispering to each other while looking at Luffy on occasion. Sanji was busy in the kitchen preparing his Elephant True Blue Fin while Usopp was gathering up the empty paint buckets to place back on the ship. Zoro was napping, leaned up against Merry’s mast.</p><p>Nami's sudden scream jarred everyone in hearing. Luffy was by her side in a flash of blue-white light. Sanji came out of the ship carrying a huge plate in each hand, one on his head, and even one balanced on his left leg. How he managed to get around like that was beyond anyone’s understanding.</p><p>“Nami-swan~! Whatever is the matter? If it is dinner you want, it's ready~.”</p><p>"The compass is broken!" Nami was panicking as the Straw Hats gathered around. She pointed at the compass; the navigation instrument was spinning more than Sanji when a woman complimented him. “It just keeps spinning!”</p><p>Miss Wednesday started laughing quite loudly. The crew turned to her with questioning looks. Nami, while not amused in the slightest, had to admit the other young woman played the part of ‘Queen Bitch’ very well; she had the laugh down and everything.</p><p>“You foolish Pirates! Did you come here intending to throw your lives away? Are you really a Navigator?” Miss Wednesday questioned Nami in a condescending tone. Nami felt her eyebrow twitch at having her navigation skills called into question.</p><p>“While she is being quite mouthy for a prisoner,” Crocus glared at the bluenette, which quickly made her shut up, “She has a point. Did you not do <em>any </em>research? That thing would be better served on the ocean floor here in the Grand Line. It's not broken, but it isn’t useful either.”</p><p>“Is it the magnetic field?” Nami gasped, grasping the situation quickly.</p><p>“Correct.” Crocus replied, “Every island on the Grand Line is rich in magnetic minerals. Every single island has its own unique magnetic field, so it's impossible for any regular compass to properly read the planet's natural field.”</p><p>“Hmm, that doesn’t sound good.” Luffy spoke up as he munched on the Elephant True Blue Fin that Sanji had set out.</p><p>“To make matters worse, none of the currents follow any regular patterns. Neither do any of the winds. As a Navigator, I'm sure you realize how dangerous that is. If you were to set sail without knowing any of this, you'd perish for sure. Without any direction, your journey would be doomed to fail.” Crocus shook his head while accepting a plate of the Blue Fin from Usopp.</p><p>“I didn't know.” Nami sighed as she looked at her wildly spinning compass, “So we're stuck here? How can we navigate if our tools don't work?”</p><p>“You need a Log Pose.” Crocus informed her after swallowing the Blue Fin he was eating.</p><p>“What's that?” Nami blinked at the old man.</p><p>“It's a special type of compass.” Crocus answered, “Without one, navigation of the Grand Line is impossible.”</p><p>“So, it's a weird compass?” Luffy asked after swallowing his current mouthful.</p><p>“Indeed,” Crocus nodded, “It’s usually worn on the wrist with a leather strap.</p><p>“You mean one of these things?” Nami held up the item she’d ‘appropriated’ from Mr. Nine earlier.</p><p>“Yes, that's a Log Pose.” Crocus confirmed.</p><p>“Hey, wait! That’s mine!” Mr. Nine yelled at Nami while Miss Wednesday noticeably stiffened.</p><p>“Pirate!” Nami pointed at herself with a teasing smirk, sticking her tongue out at the tied up agent. Both of their prisoners went a bit blue in the face. “So, this is a Log Pose huh? It has no markings.”</p><p>“It doesn't need any. As I said, every island on the Grand Line has its own unique magnetic field. Therefore, you must record each magnetic field on your journey, which will lead you to your next island. Each one connects to the next in the chain. The Log Pose is the only thing you can depend on in the Grand Line in terms of navigation. Reverse Mountain is the starting point, and you pick one of seven different paths here. But no matter which path you choose, all paths converge on a single island in the end. The island known as Raftel. In all of history, only one man has led a crew on that perilous journey and made it to the end. Gold Roger!” Crocus explained before taking another forkful of Blue Fin.</p><p>“That must be where One Piece is!” Usopp exclaimed.</p><p>“That’s the leading theory.” Crocus shrugged, “No other legend is as tempting as that one! But only one man has ever made it. No one else has reached that island.”</p><p>“Better make that two, old man.” Luffy grinned widely as the two stared each other down. A wide grin appeared on Crocus's face to match Luffy’s. The two agents looked completely shocked. “Anyway, once we’re done eating, let's set sail!”</p><p>Sanji and Usopp finally turned to the plates and their eyes bugged out, "YOU ATE EVEN THE BONES?!" Luffy simply blinked at both of them.</p><p>When Sanji had set the plates down, everyone had been given a plate of the huge fish. Nami’s was untouched, though the orangette was now starting to eat. Sanji and Usopp’s plates were half empty. Zoro, as the furthest from Luffy was able to enjoy his full plate in peace since Luffy couldn’t reach it. The plates given to Crocus and Miss Wednesday were untouched as well, except by the one’s they were intended for. Unfortunately for Usopp and Sanji the rest of the plates, the ones meant for people to have seconds from, had been picked clean, bones included, by their ravenous Captain.</p><p>"Luffy, you bastard! This tuna was supposed to be for Nami-swan to enjoy the most!" Sanji growled at his Captain. “The ONLY reason I’m not kicking you into the ocean right now is because you didn’t touch Nami’s plate!”</p><p>“None of you seemed interested, and I was hungry.” Luffy shrugged at his Cook.</p><p>“But why did you steal from our plates you glutton?!” Usopp demanded as he guarded his plate with his arm and ate the, very delicious, tuna while glaring at Luffy.</p><p>“You didn’t seem interested.” Luffy chuckled and Nami giggled beside him. She had nothing to fear from Luffy’s monstrous appetite. Her food would never be stolen by her Lover.</p><p>“Thank you, for the food.” Miss Wednesday spoke up from her spot on Luffy’s other side; she was enjoying the amazing fish with a smile. “It’s truly delicious.”</p><p>“Anything else you’d like, Miss?” Sanji was in ‘Love Mode’ again as he twirled around happily.</p><p>“Wait, why didn’t I get any?” Mr. Nine whined at Sanji. The blonde Cook stopped twirling and looked at Mr. Nine with a grimace.</p><p>“You can eat grass!” Sanji told the tied up man. Mr. Nine had crocodile tears running down his cheeks at the harsh denial.</p><p>“We'd better be careful with this. Our entire journey rests on this staying safe.” Nami stated as she strapped the Log Pose to her wrist.</p><p>Suddenly, everyone heard a strange clacking sound from above. Mr. Nine's jaw dropped, and he broke into a flop sweat. Miss Wednesday also stiffened up and looked up in fear.</p><p>“Oh no!” The crown-wearing man cried out in terror, “It's the Unluckies!” All of the people there looked up and saw what appeared to be a spotted otter riding a vulture wearing aviator goggles.</p><p>“It's an otter riding a vulture?” Nami sounded like she was questioning her own eyes.</p><p>“Hey, it isan otter riding a vulture.” Luffy chuckled at the sight.</p><p>“Okay, but why is an otter riding a vulture?” Zoro asked and then he blinked, “Is that a bomb?” The otter had a shell in its hand which it was whacking against a rock. That was what was causing the clacking sound they heard. A moment later and the fuse on the device lit up. It was then chucked directly at the two agents with the crew.</p><p>“Usopp…” Luffy only had to say the Gunman’s name. A second later and two shots rang out. Luffy held up his index and middle fingers in the ‘gun’ position and the thin, incredibly hot beam of lightning from his Goro Goro no Pistol vaporized the explosive before it could get anywhere near the group.</p><p>The two agents gaped at what they’d just witnessed. With no effort involved both the Unluckies had been killed by a single bullet each! The Captain also had a Devil Fruit too! Just as the dead Otter and Vulture hit the ocean with a splash, Miss Wednesday regained her ability to speak.</p><p>“Is everyone on this Pirate crew this scary?” Miss Wednesday was wide-eyed. Thankfully her muttering was only heard by her tied-up partner behind her.</p><p>“What do we do, Miss Wednesday? Should we ask?” Mr. Nine whispered to his partner. He knew she would understand what he was asking without having to explain. Miss Wednesday had the proverbial ‘lightbulb’ go off after thinking for a moment. She just barely managed to keep from grinning to herself.</p><p>“Excuse me, Mr. Captain?” Miss Wednesday turned to Luffy with a smile.</p><p>“You can just call me Luffy.” Luffy shrugged as he looked at her. “What's your name anyway?”</p><p>“I’m Miss Wednesday. This is Mr. Nine.” Miss Wednesday blinked at him. She expected him to have picked up on their names by now. He should have heard them a few times already.</p><p>“What’s your<strong> real</strong>name?” Luffy stared at her flatly.</p><p>“Oh!” The bluenette started, “We…we can’t say! I’m sorry! Our work requires us to be secretive! Our company’s motto is ‘Mystery’ that’s all we can say!”</p><p>“Okay… What is it?” Luffy waved off their oddities without concern.</p><p>“May we please get a ride back home on your ship?” Miss Wednesday asked, bowing her head, “With both our boat and our Log Pose gone, we can’t get back home. It’s not very far from here! It’s one of the first islands on the Grand Line. It’s called Cactus Island and our town is Whiskey Peak. We just want to go home! We promise to repay you for your trouble!”</p><p>“I wouldn't trust them.” Crocus spoke up, “They’ve been up to no good since they got here.”</p><p>“Plus, they tried to kill Laboon.” Nami remarked, and the two agents flinched at the reminder. Nami stared Miss Wednesday in the eyes, “Why should we help you?”</p><p>“It's fine.” Luffy chuckled and Nami turned to him in surprise. He was grinning lightly at Miss Wednesday, the young woman giving him a demure look. Nami was almost surprised that the other woman could pull off the act. Being able to swap between demure lady and Queen Bitch took practice. “We’ll take you to this Sake Summit place. It’s as good a route to start with as any other, right?” Miss Wednesday’s face brightened at Luffy’s agreement. She gave him a short bow and Nami almost smirked. The girl was clearly trying to draw Luffy’s eyes to her breasts. Unfortunately for the bluenette, Luffy was pretty much immune to the feminine wiles of strangers. He hadn’t responded to hers until they’d grown closer and started to bond.</p><p>“Care to explain? Also, the town is called Whiskey Peak." Nami leaned in and whispered to her Lover.</p><p>“Shishishi,” Luffy chuckled, “Just a feeling. This seems like fun.”</p><p>“Are you sure it’s not because she’s cute?” Nami teased him with a grin.</p><p>“Nah, it’s because she’s not being honest with us, or with herself.” Luffy wrapped his arm around her waist again. “So it’ll probably be a fun first island.”</p><p>“Observation?” Nami asked before kissing his neck.</p><p>“Yep, you’ll get there with practice.” Luffy grinned at his Lover.</p><p>“Alright then, time to set the Log Pose.” Nami smiled at him as she left his arms and went to set their route.</p><p>“Are you sure you want to take these two? Once you choose a route, you can't change it.” Crocus warned Luffy.</p><p>“It's fine!” Luffy grinned widely, “If we don't like this route, then we’ll just sail around again.”</p><p>“Alright, just make sure to set the Pose using the map.” Crocus couldn't help but break out into a grin of his own.</p><p>“It's all set!” Nami called out, “The Log Pose is pointing to Cactus Island!”</p><p>“Great!” Luffy cheered, “Let's set sail! Thank you for everything, Crocus!”</p><p>“Thank you for your help!” Nami waved as they all walked up the gangplank and boarded the Going Merry. Luffy quickly jumped up onto the figurehead and took his special seat. The ship's anchor was pulled up and the sails were unfurled, they took off at the first wind without trouble. Laboon chirped out his goodbyes and Luffy replied.</p><p>“We’ll be back, Laboon! Don’t damage our Jolly Roger!” Luffy waved to the mountain of a whale.</p><p>As the ship disappeared over the horizon, Crocus adopted a serious expression, “Could that crew of Pirates be the ones we’ve been waiting for? He has a weird aura to him, eh Roger?” The old man chuckled as he thought about how similar and yet different Luffy and his old Captain were.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Luffy and crew have made new friends! Laboon has a new set of nakama to see when they make it back around the Grand Line! They’ve also been introduced to Mr. Nine and Miss Wednesday! Too bad the two don’t know that it’s rather hard to lie to an Observation User!</strong>
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  <strong>But hey, Whiskey Peak will be a fun time for the crew, right? Not like anybody is going to try and attack them. Certainly no one will come to the island on a mission to eliminate traitors! I mean, really, what’re the odds of someone from the Criminal Underworld showing up at one of the first islands of the Grand Line to hunt for a specific Devil Fruit?</strong>
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  <strong>Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Whiskey Peak, Grand Line Dangers</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! Whiskey Peak! How will the Straw Hats handle the situations that arise? Will things change or stay the same?</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 18 – Whiskey Peak, Grand Line Dangers</strong>
</p><p>"What is with these pirates?" Miss Wednesday blinked as she watched the Straw Hat crew. It was the morning of the second day of their voyage to Cactus Island and the town of Whiskey Peak. The crew had relaxed and taken it easy for the rest of the day from the Twin Capes. She was given a 'room' in the female quarters, the accordion wall system was rather ingenious in her opinion, and Mr. Nine had been given one in the men's quarters. Both had been given the warning that <strong>any </strong>nefarious or hostile actions would see them tossed overboard. She'd behave though, especially after being able to take a hot shower for the first time in <strong>days</strong>!</p><p>Shortly after daybreak the next day, where she'd been rudely awoken by the crew's noise, every member of the Straw Hat Pirates had been doing some form of training. Even she and Mr. Nine had been dragged into it, though that was ostensibly so that they'd never be out of the crews' sight. She sighed, "I mean, really, don't they know the meaning of the word <em>moderation</em>?!" Miss Wednesday exhaled heavily, she thought she trained herself pretty well, but she didn't think she could do half of what she'd watched them do. At the moment she was resting from the <em>forced</em> training. The green-haired swordsman, Zoro, and the blonde chef, Sanji, were <strong>still</strong> sparring with the Captain! She could barely feel her legs!</p><p>Usopp, the Gunman of the crew, had downed his breakfast and headed up to the crow's nest to keep watch as he rested from the training. She'd seen pirates strapped with multiple weapons before, but she'd <em>never</em> gotten the feeling that she could be shot with <strong>every</strong> gun they had on them before she hit the ground. That, however, <em>was</em> the feeling she got from the long-nosed teen.</p><p>The Navigator, Nami, was a surprise in and of herself. At first, she had assumed, just from the orangette's figure, that they'd have similar strengths. They were both curvy, feminine, and sexy. So she expected the woman to probably be a mid-range or long-range fighter. Maybe even a non-combatant at all. But the orangette had not only made it through the training, she'd even taken up an extra spar with the Captain too! The way the Navigator moved in combat was so fluid, it was like she almost knew where the next blow would come from! She was also very adept with the staff she wielded too. Miss Wednesday had never seen such skill with a simple staff!</p><p>Zoro and Sanji did <strong>double</strong> the amount of training that Usopp or Nami did. The two were clearly part of the combatants for the small crew. Watching the insane amount of weight the two used for workouts made her feel phantom pains! Then they went for double or even triple rounds of sparring with the Captain on top of that!</p><p>That left the Captain himself, Luffy, and he had Miss Wednesday just shaking her head in disbelief. Not only could he outdo the weight that either Zoro or Sanji used for workouts, by a considerable margin at that, he did so with a smile! The straw-hatted young man was fast, agile, strong, and also had the fluid movement that Nami showed in her spars. The man clearly had the respect of his crew and Miss Wednesday wondered what kind of Bounty he might have on him. She also suspected he was holding back. She couldn't be sure, but the way he seemed to always be <em>just</em> a bit faster than his sparring partner, or <em>just</em> a bit stronger, led her to her hypothesis.</p><p>"This is what it takes to be strong." Nami shrugged at the bluenette from where she was looking between the map and the Log Pose. "If we didn't do this, then we probably wouldn't make it on the Grand Line."</p><p>"What's with the meditation that you guys do?" Miss Wednesday questioned the Navigator. It seemed odd to her that a crew of Pirates would practice meditation of all things. Though this was also her first time meeting Peacemain Pirates. Out of every ten Pirate Crews, you might get one crew of Peacemain Pirates. The other nine crews would be the typical Morganeer Pirates; the type that pillaged, raided, raped, murdered, and burned down villages and towns.</p><p>"Don't worry about it." Nami glanced over at her with a grin that screamed 'it's a secret' on her lips.</p><p>Mr. Nine huffed and puffed from his position leaned up against the edge of the ship. The orange-haired man looked as if he was barely keeping conscious. It almost seemed like the Captain was making sure her partner would be too exhausted to do anything untoward while on their ship.</p><p>
  <strong>BAM</strong>
</p><p>A loud crash came from the rear upper deck and Miss Wednesday flinched at the unexpected noise. Two blurs landed on the main deck and rolled to a stop. They were revealed to be Sanji and Zoro. Both men were panting and had sweat pouring down their faces. They also had bruises forming on their visible skin and Miss Wednesday was amazed they were still able to get back to their feet.</p><p>"Shishishi, good job Zoro, good job Sanji! You two are definitely getting better!" Luffy chuckled at them. The black-haired young man barely looked winded!</p><p>"One of these days, Luffy…" Zoro panted threateningly. "One of these days…"</p><p>"Don't think you'll be able to take me lightly forever… Shitty Captain…" Sanji breathed heavily.</p><p>"I just don't get it!" Miss Wednesday waved her arms around at the crew. "I thought East Blue was supposed to be full of weaklings! It's literally called the 'Weakest Sea' in the world!"</p><p>"Hey!" The entire crew shouted.</p><p>"Well it's true!" Miss Wednesday retorted, though she did feel bad about indirectly insulting the people that were helping her. "There are only a few Bounties from the East Blue over ten million! The other three Blues' Bounties average in the ten million Beri range!" The bluenette cringed as she noticed the looks on the crew's faces. Perhaps pressing the comparison hadn't been the wisest choice.</p><p>"I guess I can see where she's coming from," Nami grinned at the bluenette. "We moved through the strongest Pirates in the East Blue without too much trouble. Hell, Luffy didn't even need to try." Miss Wednesday blinked at the new information. "Still, you are talking down on us, aren't you? You want to have a go?" She assembled her staff and held it at the ready.</p><p>"No, no, I'm fine!" Miss Wednesday turned pale and shook her head furiously.</p><p>"Well that's no fun." Luffy commented; he almost looked like he was pouting!</p><p>"I'm still pretty sure I've heard those odd codenames before." Zoro eyed the two 'Agents' closely.</p><p>"Uh…" Miss Wednesday started to sweat as he eyed her. She was saved from any further questioning when the weather suddenly changed.</p><p>"What in the hell?!" Nami exclaimed as the weather went from warm, sunny, and calm spring day, to heavy winter in an instant. It was like they had crossed an invisible line and a new season was on the other side! The two girls started to shiver due to their thin, short clothes; Nami in a skirt while Miss Wednesday was wearing her shorts. A heavy snowfall began and it was just short of a blizzard in a matter of moments! To the crew's shock, the snow was already starting to pile up on the ship as they watched. "How the hell?! I've never seen weather change like this before!" She wrapped her arms around herself as the wind began to pick up.</p><p>"That's the Grand Line for you! We've passed outside of the Twin Capes' stable climate. The sea between Reverse Mountain and the first islands is especially crazy!" Miss Wednesday explained while rubbing her arms, her frosted breath appearing as white clouds. Both of the women ran inside to get into warmer clothing. Nami was gracious enough to loan the bluenette some of her things. When they came back outside, Luffy and Usopp were already building snowmen.</p><p>"Oh, Sanji~!" Nami called out with a grin.</p><p>"Yes, Nami-swan~?" Sanji practically pirouetted to them. "What may I do for you, my lovelies? A nice hot chocolate, perhaps?"</p><p>"Please, a warm drink would be lovely right now." Nami smiled at him. "Make sure everyone gets one."</p><p>"Yes~!" The blonde zipped into the kitchen with hearts pouring off his form.</p><p>"There wasn't even time to cover up my precious trees! They can survive cold snaps, but I don't know about ones <em>this</em> fast! Crocus was right! This stupid weather defies logic! Was that <em>thunder?</em> Great, now we have lightning too!" Nami grumbled out, she was already not a fan of the weather of the Grand Line!</p><p>"Hey, shouldn't you be keeping an eye on the Log Pose?" Miss Wednesday questioned the orangette. "I haven't really seen you steering much."</p><p>"What do you mean? I've been checking our course regularly. The wheel is locked too." Nami informed the bluenette.</p><p>"You <em>might </em>want to check again. You're really underestimating the Grand Line!" Miss Wednesday winced.</p><p>Nami cocked an eyebrow at the other woman. But, Miss Wednesday<em> was </em>a Grand Line native. Nami didn't get to be the best Navigator in the entire East Blue by not learning from those who came before, so she raised her arm to look at the Log Pose. "See, we're right on…WHAT THE FUCK?!"</p><p>Luffy and Usopp stopped their snow fight at hearing Nami's scream.</p><p>"What's wrong Nami?" Luffy asked his Lover curiously.</p><p>"Luffy! Unlock on the wheel! Now, hurry! We need to turn the ship around, one hundred and eighty degrees!" Nami grabbed her head, "This is crazy! I just checked like five minutes ago and we were right on target! The seas were smooth! How the hell did we literally turn around?"</p><p>"The sea is having its way with us." Mr. Nine sneered while walking over to them.</p><p>"The Log Pose is the only thing you can trust on these seas." Miss Wednesday told her, in a more gentle tone, "Nothing else makes sense here! Not the currents, not the weather, not the clouds, the waves, or even the sky! Everything is treacherous and in flux!"</p><p>"Are you sure you're the Navigator?" Mr. Nine questioned pompously. Nami's eyebrow twitched and she slowly turned to look at him.</p><p>"Get off your ass and help then, you damn freeloader!" Nami yelled while tossing him over the railing and to the main deck "Start shoveling snow!"</p><p>"Ow!" Mr. Nine whined as he stood up from his fall. He then was clocked in the chest with a snow shovel that Luffy threw to him.</p><p>"There's a shovel, hurry up!" Luffy ordered as he leapt into the cabin and unlocked the wheel.</p><p>"Take the wind from the starboard yard brace! Turn us a hundred and eighty to port! Usopp, watch astern! Sanji, thank you for the hot chocolate!" Nami yelled instructions and thanked Sanji as the Cook handed her and Miss Wednesday the warm beverages. Sanji twirled away with hearts in his eyes to hand out the rest of the drinks. Everyone enjoyed the warm drinks as the Going Merry turned around in a wide half circle.</p><p>"Why is my hot chocolate kind of gritty?" Mr. Nine questioned Sanji.</p><p>"Be thankful you even got any." Sanji replied to the crown-wearing man. "It's gritty because you got the dregs from the bottom of the pot." Mr. Nine cried crocodile tears at the callousness Sanji continued to show him.</p><p>"Hold up! The wind just changed!" Usopp yelled out from the crow's nest.</p><p>"What! No way!" Nami groaned as she read the winds again.</p><p>"Ahh, the first winds of spring!" Mr. Nine and Miss Wednesday smiled as they faced the new wind. Miss Wednesday happily sipping from her hot chocolate.</p><p>"Why?! This doesn't make any damn sense!" Nami began to grind her teeth at the nonsensical weather.</p><p>"The waves are getting bigger!" Usopp called out.</p><p>"Hey look! There are dolphins over there! Let's go see them!" Luffy yelled out gleefully, the large dolphins leaping from the sea quite a distance away.</p><p>"There's an iceberg at ten o'clock!" Usopp yelled again, "Oh shit, we're headed right for it!"</p><p>"Luffy!" Nami screamed at Luffy and the Captain vanished in a spark of blue-white light. The next instant he was directly above the iceberg. Then he cocked back his fist and <strong>punched</strong> the titanic piece of ice! The iceberg exploded into snow, even the hidden mass below the waves! The sea exploded upwards as the water rushed in to fill the void. The spray of the waves didn't even make it to the Going Merry before they were blown away by the winds.</p><p>"What the?!" Miss Wednesday and Mr. Nine's eyes bugged out of their heads at the display of strength! Luffy reappeared on the deck next to Nami as if he'd never left the ship at all!</p><p>"There's fog up ahead!" Sanji yelled out. The massive bank of fog was so thick it looked like a solid mass!</p><p>"What kind of ocean is this?!" Nami yelled, holding her head in between her hands. Luffy chuckled as he gave Nami a side-hug.</p><p>And all the while, Zoro and Sanji were being run ragged trying to keep up with all the rigging changes Nami was yelling out! The swordsman and cook dashed across the deck, while yelling at Mr. Nine to hurry up with the shoveling as the snow was starting to accumulate again. The green suited man was given a lump on the head from each of them until he picked up the pace.</p><p>When the weather finally calmed down again, the crew let out sighs of relief. Mr. Nine looked exhausted from the constant snow shoveling, Sanji and Zoro were leaned up against the mast, both catching their breath. Usopp was half dangling from the crow's nest, his voice almost shot from yelling out the next danger approaching the ship. Nami looked more than a little frazzled, as did Miss Wednesday, who'd been trying to help the Navigator keep up with the weather changes. Luffy was <strong>still</strong> all smiles as he'd retaken his special seat atop Merry's figurehead.</p><p>"Alright, listen up! We have to stay alert! Who knows what will happen next! Everyone needs to be ready for more bat shit crazy weather at all times!" Nami held her fist up, an almost manic gleam in her eyes. "I understand now! We all know how dangerous this ocean is now! And I know now how the Grand Line got its reputation! All of the navigational skills I've honed for the last decade-plus seem useless here!"</p><p>"You're not exactly inspiring confidence here. Are you sure we'll be okay?" Usopp groaned from his position in the crow's nest.</p><p>"Of course!" Nami growled out. "Other crews have braved these waters before! 'Hawkeye' Mihawk sailed it in a goddamn coffin boat! The Pirate King even reached the end of this sea! I <strong>WILL</strong> learn how to read this damn sea like a book, just like I did back home! I <strong>WILL</strong> get us through this journey safely! We. Will. Not. Fail!" Every one of the crew was smirking at the fire their Navigator spoke with. Nami pumped her fist once into the air. "For our Dreams!"</p><p>"YEAH!" The replying shouts of the small crew sounded much louder to Mr. Nine and Miss Wednesday.</p><p>It was still another day and a half of sailing with random 'Hellscape Weather' popping up without warning before they got to their destination. The weather and sea seemed to calm down and stabilize a bit. Usopp called out that he'd spotted something on the horizon not long after. As they sailed closer Nami smiled as she looked over the map. Luffy, sitting on Merry's figurehead again, was practically bouncing in excitement! This was their first island of the Grand Line!</p><p>As they neared the island they all noticed how it got its name.</p><p>"Are those really cacti?!" Usopp exclaimed as what looked like MASSIVE cactus plants loomed over the island.</p><p>"Whoa!" Luffy grinned widely. "It's Sake Summit!"</p><p>"Whiskey Peak." Nami corrected him with a grin, standing at the base of the figurehead.</p><p>"We arrived safely!" Mr. Nine exclaimed joyfully. Miss Wednesday smiled as well, it was good to be back. She needed to speak with Mr. Eight too. She could honestly say she liked this crew, but she needed to go. So, for now, she just went along with her partner and jumped onto the railing of the ship. "We'll be taking our leave now." Mr. Nine declared loudly.</p><p>"Thanks for the ride, darlings! We'll meet again, fate willing!" Miss Wednesday slapped a smug grin onto her face. She had a part to play, even if it meant turning these friendly pirates in. She had to do it for her country, until they could save their homeland.</p><p>"Bye, bye, baby!" The two agents then back-flipped off the ship and into the water below. The Straw Hats just watched while blinking at the eccentric duo.</p><p>"Okay…" Luffy shrugged as they watched the pair swim towards the island, perpendicular to their own course. "Well whatever! Let's land!" He grinned brightly. "I wonder what kind of island this is. I hope it's a fun one!"</p><p>"Your idea of 'fun' isn't the same as everybody else's, Luffy!" Usopp yelled at his Captain. "What if this island is full of monsters or something?!"</p><p>"Well, that certainly is a possibility. This is the Grand Line after all." Sanji chuckled as he took a drag from his cigarette.</p><p>"Hey! Shut it! I don't want to hear that!" Usopp pointed at the Cook with a glare.</p><p>"It doesn't matter what's on this island, we have to stay here until the Log Pose records this island's magnetic field and picks up the next one on our path." Nami spoke up as she looked at the Log Pose strapped to her wrist. "According to Crocus, the time that it takes for the pose to record the magnetic field varies from island to island, so we may be here for a while. It could be hours, or could be weeks. Just keep that in mind."</p><p>As they sailed further into the island, sailing right into a river that had a wide bay. The bay held a large dock that could fit almost any size ship. Only a few small fishing boats currently occupied the large dock though. The crew heard voices in the mists that surrounded the coast of the island. All of the crew tensed, just in case they needed to fight. Luffy closed his eyes for a moment to 'listen'. A few moments later he grinned widely as he opened his eyes. When the fog finally cleared completely, it was to the sight of seemingly the entire town <em>cheering </em>for them.</p><p>"Welcome to the Town of Celebration – Whiskey Peak!" The crowd roared, doing everything from cheering to literally throwing confetti at them. "Welcome to our town, Pirates! Hurray for the heroes of the sea!"</p><p>"Wow, so Pirates are heroes here! Awesome! What a welcome!" Usopp was immediately taken into the townspeople's pace.</p><p>"Wow! So many cute girls!" Sanji's visible eye turned into a heart and he started 'noodling' about the deck. Nami and Zoro deadpanned while Luffy was chuckling to himself.</p><p>"Oh yeah, this isn't suspicious <em>at all</em>." Nami commented, while stopping herself from rolling her eyes at the display.</p><p>"This should be fun." Luffy laughed, he wasn't the type to turn down a free party.</p><p>"In more than one way." Zoro smirked and briefly grasped one of his swords.</p><p>"Hem-hem!" A tall man with blonde, ridiculously over-curled hair, holding a saxophone in his hand greeted them when they finally docked and disembarked. He had broad, thick shoulders, a barrel chest, and oddly skinny legs too. "Mi-mi-mi!" His odd throat clearing almost made Luffy laugh by itself! "My name is Igarappoi, and I'm the Mayor of Whiskey Peak! Welcome, brave Pirates!" The crowd let out another deafening cheer. "Welcome to Whiskey Peak! I know this might come as quite the surprise to you all. But we're a bustling town of music and ale brewing! We're very proud of our ale and have an ocean of it! Would you care to join us in a celebration and regale us with the tales of your adventures?"</p><p>"You bet we would!" Luffy, Usopp, and Sanji cheered, their arms thrown over each other's shoulders.</p><p>"Say, how long does it take for the Log Pose to set on this island?" Nami questioned the mayor curiously.</p><p>"Log Pose?" The mayor blinked at her sharp stare. "Mi-mi-mi! Not very long at all, young lady, only about six or so hours, eight at the very most. But please, set aside such trivial matters and enjoy yourself!" He tried to put a hand on her shoulder, but a glare had him pulling back with an apologetic smile. "Come on everyone! It's party time!"</p><p>From that moment on a huge party was underway! Zoro and Nami got into a drinking contest with a Fifty-Thousand Beri prize. Sanji was surrounded by twenty women and Usopp was regaling a seemingly enraptured audience with his tall tales while downing multiple flagons of booze. Luffy was eating through enough for a dozen men easily. The cooks in the kitchen started to drop from exhaustion as they couldn't keep up with Luffy's voracious appetite! All the while, laughter and cheer were in the air along with the 'famed' music.</p><p>"Bwahaha!" Igarappoi laughed loudly. "Marvelous! I'm so glad you're having fun! Continue enjoying yourselves!"</p><p>Miss Wednesday sat on one of the buildings above the party, several hours later, just staring at the moon. Mr. Nine sat a bit away from her on the ledge. They'd written up their report for the Boss, but they'd have to send it through the normal mail since the Unluckies were dead. She looked down when the door opened as the sounds from within had died down. She eyed the town mayor as he exited the building.</p><p>"Tonight… The cactus rocks seem to dance… So beautifully in the moonlight." Iggarapoi mused as he looked up at the moon.</p><p>"You're a poet, Mr. Eight." Mr. Nine declared as he and Miss Wednesday jumped down from the roof.</p><p>"Hmm, if it isn't Mr. Nine and Miss Wednesday, how did your mission go?" He asked, turning to face the duo.</p><p>"Badly." Miss Wednesday gave him a <em>look</em>, as they locked eyes for a moment. Unknown to Mr. Nine, there was much more in that gaze than he realized. "The Pirates in there are <em>incredibly </em>strong. You better have put more than just booze in those drinks. I wouldn't want to have to fight them directly."</p><p>"I sent one of the others to go check the latest Wanted Posters a bit ago." Igarappoi, or Mr. Eight, replied. "Mi-mi-mi! We'll have an idea of how strong they are shortly." He informed them.</p><p>"Oh my," A new voice called out from the door. It was a woman dressed in the habit of a nun. She'd been Nami's final opponent of the drinking contest. She ripped off the ensemble revealing an incredibly muscular body, dark skin, and pink hair styled into two little puffs. "Damn, I was just drinking carbonated barley tea and even I feel buzzed." She cracked her neck as she stretched. "They sure can put away the food and booze. But was this whole charade really necessary for such a small crew? We should have finished them at the port. As it is, there's a food shortage. And no whale meat is headed this way." She glared at Mr. Nine and Miss Wednesday.</p><p>"Don't say that!" Miss Wednesday yelled at the other agent.</p><p>"Yeah! We did our best!" Mr. Nine declared; his hands on his hips.</p><p>"You failed, is what you did." Miss Monday retorted.</p><p>"Ohohohoho!" Miss Wednesday's 'Queen Bitch' laugh returned as she held her hand over her mouth. "Aren't you getting a bit too big for your britches, Miss Monday? I'd like to have seen you take down that whale with that crazy old doctor protecting him." The two women glared at each other fiercely, one could almost see lightning shooting between their eyes. Their argument would have continued, if not for a rank-and-file subordinate practically falling over himself in front of them.</p><p>"Big trouble, Mayor!" The man panted out.</p><p>"Steady yourself, man," Mr. Eight ordered the subordinate. "Did you get the information I requested from the 'office'?"</p><p>"Y-yes sir!" He nodded, though his eyes were still wide in panic. "I don't think we should try anything with this crew! Look at this shit!" He held up <em>five</em> Wanted Posters to show them, the first one visible being Luffy's.</p><p>"S-Sixty Million!" Miss Wednesday gaped in shock; her eyes shooting wide open at the number!</p><p>"One-Hundred-Thirty-Six Million for all five of them?!" Miss Monday's jaw was almost on the ground.</p><p>"I knew it had to be pretty high, but I had no idea it would be that high! They're from East Blue of all seas! This is insane!" Miss Wednesday replied in shock.</p><p>"Only a fool judges a Pirate by their appearance, Miss Bunbay…" Mr. Eight coughed to clear his throat. "Mi-mi-mi! Miss Monday."</p><p>"Holy! I'm so ashamed." Miss Monday rubbed the back of her head ruefully.</p><p>"Tie them up and take everything of value from their ship! We'll be able to make a very good report to the boss!" Mr. Eight ordered the other agents.</p><p>"Try it and I'll kill every last one of you myself." A voice that Miss Wednesday and Mr. Nine recognized immediately rang out. All four agents mechanically turned to look up at the roof of the building next to them. Nami stood, with her staff in her hand, on top of the roof glaring down at them.</p><p>"Dartbrow and Usopp are still pretty tired from the party and the voyage too." Zoro was up on the roof too, grinning like the devil himself, one of his katana drawn and resting on his shoulder.</p><p>"Oh man," The nameless subordinate panicked. "We should call it off, Mayor!" He turned to look at Mr. Eight. "Let's just be super polite and let them leave!"</p><p>"Shishishi," Luffy laughed and all four agents realized they <em>hadn't noticed him</em> sitting between his two standing crewmates. He was sitting crossed-legged and he had his right elbow on top of his right knee. His chin rested in his palm and the wide grin on his face did <strong>nothing </strong>to ease the agents' nerves. "You can do that if you want. You treated us to a good time, so if you don't do anything else, it'll be no harm, no foul."</p><p>All four agents blinked in shock at the Captain. A Pirate with a Sixty Million Beri Bounty; was willing to let them go without trouble, so long as they didn't try to capture the crew. This option had never come up before and the agents tried to weigh both options in their minds.</p><p>"I still want to take whatever Beri they have lying around though." Nami grinned down at the agents. "Now where could they keep their money?" She pretended to look around the town with a grin. "Hmm, maybe in that building over there?" She pointed to a building at the base of one of the cactus-like mountains. "It's built differently than the rest of the buildings in town. It has thicker walls, small windows, a metal door, and it's built into the mountain." All four agents' eyes widened as Nami gave them a Cheshire grin. "Bingo!" The square below them began to fill with all of the Bounty Hunter residents of the town. It was only natural when three of their targets went missing. Every Bounty Hunter down on the ground started drawing and cocking weapons, aiming right for the trio of pirates.</p><p>"Oh, it looks like there's going to be a second party after all!" Luffy chuckled and Zoro smirked. Nami grinned down at them all.</p><p>"About a hundred of you guys, from the looks of it." Zoro commented with his smirk growing. "This should be a nice test for my new swords."</p><p>"Shishishi, have fun, you two." Luffy encouraged his nakama. He was still sitting there without a care.</p><p>"Well, I know where I'm going." Nami smiled as she leaned down and pecked Luffy's cheek. "I'm hoping for a good haul."</p><p>"That settles it then." Zoro grinned devilishly. "We'll be your opponents tonight… Baroque Works!"</p><p>"EEEH?!" In an instant, every single bounty hunter there reared back as if Zoro had slapped them across the face with a raw fish. "Impossible! How do you know the name of our secret society?!" Several of them demanded.</p><p>"Why? You idiots tried to recruit me a while ago. Back when I was in your line of work. Naturally I turned you down, with the stupid need for secrecy, the dumb code names, and how <strong>none</strong> of you knows what your boss even looks like, his whereabouts, or even what your real goal is...it didn't appeal to me. Ended up having to kill your recruiter, he didn't want to take 'No' for an answer." Zoro shrugged with a smirk.</p><p>"Unfortunate for you!" Mr. Eight declared with a glare. "Everyone who knows of our organization must perish!" They all took aim at the three pirates. "A few more tombstones to adorn the cactus rocks!" The group of Bounty Hunters all fired at once, plumes of smoke and unburned gunpowder obscuring their vision for a few moments. Mr. Eight noticed Nami leaping across the rooftops towards the treasury building and grit his teeth. "Some of you; kill that woman! She's planning to raid the treasury!" That got almost two dozen of the Bounty Hunters to panic and chase after the orangette.</p><p>"You'll need more than that." Luffy laughed and the Bounty Hunters all stared bug-eyed at him. He hadn't moved a muscle! He was still sitting in the exact same position as before! In fact, Zoro had disappeared too!</p><p>"You'll need a lot more than a 'few' new tombstones." Zoro spoke up from behind Mr. Eight, the blade of Wado stabbed through the ridiculously curled hair. The large blonde man's eyes were wide and sweat rolled down his face.</p><p>"There he is!" Several Bounty Hunters cried out as they turned their guns on Zoro, and Mr. Eight by extension.</p><p>"Don't shoot you fools!" Mr. Eight ordered his subordinates. "You'll hit me too!" When he heard the cocking of pistols and rifles he panicked. "Don't do it!" The man grabbed his saxophone and blew into it strongly. "Igarappa!" A blast went off and several of the Bounty Hunters in front of Mr. Eight went down to a spray of pellets. Zoro disappeared again in the confusion of the attack.</p><p>"Was that a shotgun?" Zoro wondered to himself from behind a nearby building. "You could hurt someone with that." From there Zoro drew Yubashiri and Kitetsu III. Luffy watched on as Zoro tested his new swords, running through the town and beating the Bounty Hunters one after another. A few had stayed to try and take Luffy down. After they realized that their guns wouldn't work, they tried to scale a ladder to the top of a building. Luffy, not really wanting to deal with them, had blasted them with a burst of Conqueror's Haki and sent them all collapsing unconscious. That left Zoro free to deal with the Bounty Hunters after him and Nami to deal with the ones that ran after her.</p><p>-With Nami-</p><p>"Man, you guys kinda suck." Nami mentioned as her shock staff impacted the stomach of a large man and sent him to the ground; the spasming of his body showing the voltage being passed into him. That was the sixth Bounty Hunter she'd taken down in her trip to their treasury. She spun and dodged a pistol shot, swinging her staff into the woman's head took her out of the fight. Another man with a sword came at her from behind and took an electrified jab to the chest. She dashed away again, ducking around corners to break their line of fire, backtracking to catch other pursuers unaware. Nami was swiftly dealing with the Bounty Hunters that had been sent after her.</p><p>She cracked her staff over the head of another Bounty Hunter as she approached her destination. She couldn't help but chuckle as she peeked around a corner and saw the last four Bounty Hunters, which she could sense in the area anyway, standing in front of the treasury.</p><p>"Well, at least a few of them were smart." Nami mumbled to herself. With stealth born from years of thieving, Nami slipped through the shadows of the buildings. She was close enough to strike before the four even realized she was there!</p><p>"Ah!" The first Bounty Hunter went down to an electrified jab to the head. As he collapsed the other three turned towards the scream. Nami was already moving though. The second Bounty Hunter, a thin man with pale skin, was folded in half by her staff slamming into his stomach. She dropped low to avoid a rifle shot and the 'crack' she heard as her staff broke the ankle of the rifleman was satisfying. The man jolted from the electricity coursing through him and collapsed. The last Bounty Hunter, a woman with dark black hair, thrust her spear at Nami.</p><p>"Die pirate!" The woman spat at Nami as she thrust the spear rapidly at her. Nami sank into her Observation and weaved around the thrusts. The Bounty Hunter got more and more frantic as Nami seemingly dodged her attacks with no effort! Seeing an opening through her Observation, Nami swung her staff and clocked the woman in the side of the head. The woman jerked as the shock staff did its work and crumpled to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.</p><p>"Done and done." Nami smiled as she left the almost trance-like state she fell into when focusing on her developing Observation Haki. "Now, let's see what you guys have in here!" The orangette opened the heavy metal door, which to her surprise <strong>wasn't </strong>locked. She made good use of the strong steel lock herself though! The thief chuckled as she bolted the metal door behind her. "What kind of safe do you have?" Nami asked as she lit a lantern on a nearby desk. The glow of light illuminated a large safe, easily a meter and a half tall as well as wide. Looking over the safe, noting the manufacturer and the model, Nami huffed. "Well, at least they protect their money well. But not well enough~" She grinned to herself. This safe would take a bit of time, but she'd cracked one very similar to it just a month before she met Luffy. "Just need a little bit of time!" With that, Nami set to work on claiming the crew's haul!</p><p>"Hmm?" Luffy blinked as he turned his head to look over toward one side of the town. Two new voices had just sailed in under the cover of night. The duo had malicious intentions, violent ones. They were also a good deal stronger than anyone on this island, barring his crew, of course. An explosion went off, close to where Zoro was fighting, in fact. "Well, this may have just gotten interesting after all! Shishishi!" In a spark of blue-white light Luffy vanished and reappeared on top of a house behind Zoro. What he saw confused him slightly. Zoro was standing between Miss Wednesday and the two new 'voices'. The bluenette looked a bit roughed up and the two new people seemed to be the reason.</p><p>One was a tall black man with short, spikey dreadlocks. He wore a zipped up, brown trench coat, a pink cravat, and sunglasses. On the coat was a white '5' encased in a square. Beside him was a young, platinum-blonde haired woman with bright green eyes. It seemed she really liked lemons, because her earrings were shaped like them and her yellow sundress had images of them as the pattern of the fabric. She also carried a bright green parasol with blue stripes.</p><p>The guy's sunglasses and the woman's parasol confused Luffy a bit; considering the fact that it was the middle of the night. Both items were either no longer useful, the parasol, or an outright detriment, the sunglasses.</p><p>"Hey Captain." Zoro greeted Luffy.</p><p>"What's going on, Zoro?" Luffy questioned the standoff.</p><p>"The Mayor guy asked me to protect Miss Wednesday," Zoro shrugged, never taking his eyes off the new arrivals. "Apparently she's actually a princess. Since I didn't know what your call would be, I decided to keep her alive until you got here."</p><p>"Oh, that's neat." Luffy grinned as he jumped down and landed beside the bluenette. "Are you finally ready to be honest with us, and yourself?" He questioned the young woman with a smile.</p><p>"M-my name is Nefeltari Vivi, I'm the crown princess of Alabasta Kingdom on Sandy Island." Vivi confessed and involuntarily smiled when Luffy gave her a bright smile of his own.</p><p>"Nice to meet you, Vivi!" Luffy chuckled as he stood up and stepped between her and the Officer Agents from Baroque Works. "So yeah, I'm not one hundred percent sure of what's going on; but Vivi is under our protection for now. If you want to challenge that," Luffy leveled a cold and deadly glare on the two agents. "Then you're welcome to try."</p><p>"Kyahaha," The platinum-blonde woman laughed. "Can you believe the confidence of this rookie, Mr. Five?"</p><p>"He's a fool that doesn't know who he's messing with, Miss Valentine." Mr. Five replied as he pulled his hands from his pockets. The man then began to <em>pick his nose </em>and Luffy was confused. Mr. Five then <em>flicked his booger </em>at Luffy. With a raised eyebrow, especially at the considerable speed the nose gold was flying, Luffy smacked the projectile high into the air with a small amount of Haki. He wasn't quite expecting it to <strong>explode</strong> high in the air. Luffy blinked as he looked up at the fading explosion.</p><p>"You have a booger exploding Devil Fruit?" Luffy looked perplexed at Mr. Five. He walked forward and cracked his knuckles. "Zoro, protect Vivi while I deal with this."</p><p>"Yes, Captain." Zoro nodded, moving to stand directly in front of the bluenette. You didn't argue when Luffy used his 'Captain' voice.</p><p>"I don't know how the hell you did that, but it won't happen again." Mr. Five stated as he dug in his nose again. The man flicked another booger at Luffy and the straw-hatted pirate slapped it right back at him this time. Mr. Five stood still, taking the blast head-on without a care. Miss Valentine, Luffy noticed, leapt into the air and opened her parasol. The force of the explosion carried the platinum-blonde woman high into the air. Even Luffy easily realized the woman shouldn't have flown that high up from the blast.</p><p>"I ate the Kilo Kilo no Mi! I can change my weight from anywhere between one to ten thousand kilograms! Don't think that just because you have some trick to deal with explosions that you'll win against us! Ten Thousand Kilo Press!" The platinum-blonde dropped like a meteor, aiming right for Luffy. In response, Luffy pivoted on his right heel and then held out his arms. Miss Valentine was caught and Luffy's legs cratered the ground, sending spider-web cracks through the rocky soil he was standing on.</p><p>"Are you done now?" Luffy asked, looking Miss Valentine in her green eyes while holding her in his arms in the classic Bridal Carry.</p><p>"Yeah…" Miss Valentine nodded even as she went blue in the face. "You do know I weighed ten metric tons just now, right?"</p><p>"Grandpa threw boulders heavier than that at me and my brothers for training." Luffy shrugged and Miss Valentine could only blink at him in shock.</p><p>"You son of a bitch!" Mr. Five yelled as he pulled out a revolver, much like Usopp's, and flicked open the chamber. The man blew into it and flicked it closed. He aimed directly at Luffy, and Miss Valentine by proxy, and prepared to fire.</p><p>"Wait, wait, I'm still here!" Miss Valentine panicked as she flailed in Luffy's arms. Before he could pull the trigger Luffy's Observation picked up on something new. The young man's head snapped to his left and a fairly non-descript man froze mid-step. The two looked at each other without blinking. Even Mr. Five stopped as he <em>just now</em> noticed this man being so close to their fight.</p><p>"Well…" The new man, clad in a grey outfit blinked. "I thought I was being pretty 'quiet'," He grinned at Luffy as he looked the younger man up and down. "How did you 'hear' me?"</p><p>"You got this close without me noticing," Luffy replied already wary of this new person. "How'd you do that?"</p><p>"I asked you first." The man replied with a grin.</p><p>"Who the fuck are you?!" Mr. Five, obviously tired of being ignored, aimed his revolver at the interloper. The grey-clad man's eyes slid over the Officer Agent's form before he answered.</p><p>"Just the Shadow of a Nobody." Nanashi smiled at his target. Luffy's eyes widened and he unconsciously pulled the woman in his arms closer to himself. Those words, those names, those titles, just like Benn had warned them about!</p><p>"Fuck." Luffy whispered and only Miss Valentine heard it. The platinum-blonde looked up at the pirate that had just no-selled her strongest attack and wondered what had gotten such a reaction out of him.</p><p>"What the hell does that mean?" Mr. Five's finger was on the trigger as he prepared to shoot the man.</p><p>"I'm just here to pick up some merchandise, that's all." Nanashi held up his hands in a placating gesture. "Once I get what I came for, I'll be on my way." No one, aside from Luffy, knew what to make of the man's words. "Lucky me that a second piece of merchandise happens to be right here with my target merchandise." Nanashi looked over at Miss Valentine and the woman felt goosebumps all over her body. Every instinct she had was telling her to <strong>run</strong>! To run and run, and keep running until she couldn't anymore.</p><p>"Stay out of my way!" Mr. Five declared as he fired six times, emptying the revolver. Six explosions rocked the grey-clad man and everyone stood there in shock. Only Luffy, with his highly-developed Observation, saw what happened next.</p><p>From the smoke Nanashi blurred forward. In less than a blink his right hand glowed brightly. The glowing hand stabbed straight through Mr. Five's <em>chest</em> without slowing down. In the grey-clad man's hand was the still beating heart of Mr. Five. In an intense flash of light and heat the Officer Agent's body was reduced to ashes. The only thing left of the man was the still beating heart in Nanashi's grasp. The non-descript man opened a metal box that he pulled from within his grey jacket and tossed the beating heart inside. The lid was then closed and locked.</p><p>"Alright, merchandise secured." Nanashi smiled at the box as he held it by the built-in handle. The man then turned his eyes towards Miss Valentine. "Bonus merchandise next."</p><p>"Zoro!" Luffy yelled as he tossed Miss Valentine to his First Mate. The green-haired swordsman blinked in shock as he quickly sheathed the swords in his hands so he could catch the green-eyed woman. Luffy's electrified hand clasped around the outstretched hand of Nanashi, while his other lightning fist had been blocked by the Kuro Kari member's intensely hot palm. The two were deadlocked as a shockwave exploded from their position.</p><p>"Well damn, you're fast." Nanashi sighed as his hands dispersed and he leapt back from Luffy. The man's hands reformed from the intensely hot substance and he reassessed the situation. "Look, I don't know the whole deal of what's going on here; but wasn't that woman your enemy not ten minutes ago?"</p><p>"So what?" Luffy questioned, his eyes never leaving the Kuro Kari member.</p><p>"So why defend her?" Nanashi asked rhetorically. "Just let me collect my extra merchandise and I'll be on my way."</p><p>"I'd rather not." Luffy sparked and bright blue-white bolts leapt off his skin. Nanashi grinned at the rookie as heat began to pour off his body and a bright glow came from him. The ground underneath the man's feet was quickly reduced to molten rock.</p><p>"Do you think this wise, boy?" Nanashi questioned as the two continued to call upon their Devil Fruits. "Engaging against a Shadow like this?"</p><p>"You said you've already got what you want, so leave." Luffy retorted; lightning arcing off his body and getting dangerously close to Nanashi.</p><p>"But you're costing me One-Hundred-Fifty Million Beri by standing in my way." Nanashi informed the rookie as a flare of the bright substance he was seemingly made of liquefied the ground it touched and scorched everything near it black. "That's a lot of money."</p><p>"Leave." Luffy directed a bolt to strike the Kuro Kari member. The electricity hit the man, but seemed to almost flow around him instead of doing any damage. A line of Nanashi's body was now the bright, flaring material he was emitting. The man grinned at Luffy, seeing the young man's confused look. "What kind of Devil Fruit is that?"</p><p>"Don't worry about it." Nanashi shook his head. "How about this? You answer my questions and I'll leave without collecting the Kilo Kilo no Mi, sound good?"</p><p>"What questions?" Luffy's arcing lightning had driven Zoro, Vivi, and Miss Valentine further back away from the two of them.</p><p>"Only three," Nanashi assured Luffy. "If your answers are what I think they are, then I'll be on my way." Luffy nodded to the man, though neither had stopped using their power. Trust wasn't going to be found between the two. "First, is that the Biri Biri no Mi or the Goro Goro no Mi?"</p><p>"Goro Goro no Mi." Luffy answered and Nanashi chuckled at the answer.</p><p>"You're going to break a lot of members' hearts, kid." Nanashi laughed at Luffy. "So many of them were hoping to find the fruit itself, or at least find it in the hands of some overconfident fool they could take it from."</p><p>"Why?" Luffy asked his own question.</p><p>"Because, it's considered damn near invincible, that's why." Nanashi shook his head. "But in the hands of someone competent, like yourself, it's not worth even its' Two Billion Beri price tag! The difficulty of getting it from you makes it 'Not worth the money' you see?"</p><p>"Okay." Luffy blinked at the Kuro Kari member.</p><p>"Next question, are you a Haki Master?" Nanashi questioned.</p><p>"Grandpa said I was advanced a few years back." Luffy answered. Nanashi mulled that over and shrugged.</p><p>"Fair enough," Nanashi tilted his head as he asked his final question. "Last one, where did you get that Fruit?"</p><p>"From a guy." Luffy replied and Nanashi's grin became a smile.</p><p>"Brown hair, plain-looking, wearing dark blue clothes, barefoot, goes by the name Umino Akuma?" Nanashi chuckled when Luffy's eyes widened. "Figures. Well, from one pawn to another, let's end this here." Nanashi's body reformed completely from the flaring hot substance and the glow and heat faded away.</p><p>"What's that mean?" Luffy questioned the older man, his own powers receding.</p><p>"Nothing major, kid." Nanashi shook his head. "Just do whatever you want; you seem like the kind that'll shake up the world a bit. Being entertainment is the only reason we were given these Fruits. If you're entertaining enough you might see him again. The Devil is a real pain in the ass, since all he cares about is himself." The Kuro Kari member rummaged around in his cloak, Luffy subtly prepared for an attack. What he didn't expect was to have a book tossed at his feet. "I don't plan to get involved with another pawn. Flip through that before you piss off the wrong person and get yourself killed. This world is a lot more complex than you think, that book will tell you things you wouldn't know otherwise. It's the Underworld's version of the Bounty List. Find out who you should avoid, or don't, it's not my problem if you end up dead." With his piece said the Kuro Kari member walked away, on the fourth step he vanished from sight leaving everybody blinking. Luffy's Observation quickly covered all of Cactus Island, but there wasn't a trace of the man's 'Voice' to be found.</p><p>"Luffy?" Zoro spoke up as he, Vivi, and the visibly trembling Miss Valentine approached. "What the hell was that?"</p><p>"Get everyone and get on the Merry, Zoro." Luffy's 'Captain' voice was in full effect. "We're leaving, now!"</p><p>"Yes, Captain." Zoro ran off to the large building where the party was held to collect Usopp and Sanji.</p><p>"Now about you two." Luffy turned to face the two women. "What are you doing from here?"</p><p>"Luffy?" Nami called out before either woman could answer. The orangette was carrying a large sack over her shoulder. "What is going on? Who the hell was that guy?"</p><p>"One of the people I warned you about." Luffy responded and Nami's eyes widened. She quickly walked up to him and wrapped her left arm around his shoulders. She held him close for a moment before looking at Vivi and Miss Valentine.</p><p>"Who is she and what's Miss Wednesday doing here?" Nami looked between the new woman and Vivi.</p><p>"Miss Wednesday's name is Vivi, she's apparently a princess." Luffy answered and Nami looked at the bluenette with a sparkle in her eyes.</p><p>"You don't say?" Nami smiled at Vivi. The princess suddenly felt like she was in the eyes of a hunter.</p><p>"The other lady is Miss Something-or-other. I wasn't paying attention, another code name thing." Luffy explained and Miss Valentine gained a small tic mark over her left eye. Nami looked the platinum-blonde up and down before raising an eyebrow.</p><p>"Princess Vivi!" Mr. Eight showed up, dressed in drag for some reason, and Vivi ran over to him.</p><p>"Igaram!" Vivi called out to the large man.</p><p>"Monkey D. Luffy," Igaram looked at the Pirate Captain. "I beg of you, please take Princess Vivi with you on your ship! Our country, Alabasta, needs her to safely return! But with Baroque Works after her now, I realize I can't protect her alone! You're powerful; you have the highest starting Bounty I've ever seen from the East Blue! Please, I'll ensure that you are rewarded for your troubles!" The man bowed low to Luffy as he begged for his assistance.</p><p>"Igaram, what are you saying?" Vivi exclaimed as she grabbed the man. "What are you going to do?"</p><p>"Princess, I will leave first and head directly for Alabasta." Igaram explained as he hefted up some dummies he'd made as well. "I'll be the decoy for anyone that is currently pursuing you. Please hand me the Eternal Pose." He held out his hand to the bluenette.</p><p>"Wait a second!" Nami spoke up and Vivi stopped handing something to Igaram. The two looked over at the orangette curiously. "First off, we haven't even agreed to take her with us. Secondly, what kind of reward are we talking about? Third, what the hell is an Eternal Pose?"</p><p>"Ah, yes, you're new to the Grand Line." Igaram remembered. "An Eternal Pose is a special Pose that always points to the island it was made for. No matter where in the world you go, it always points to that particular island."</p><p>"Sounds useful." Nami nodded, she made a mental note to look into Eternal Poses later. They wouldn't be staying on Cactus Island much longer. "If we agree to take Vivi under out protection, how's One Billion Beri sound as a reward?" The Navigator's eyes were practically Beri Symbols as she made her offer. "Surely that's not too much to pay for a princess' safe delivery to her homeland, right?"</p><p>"A B-Billion Beri!" Igaram choked on air. "I couldn't possibly promise such a sum!"</p><p>"Huh, that's too bad." Nami sighed with a shrug.</p><p>"I'm sure if you talk with the King, he'll work out a suitable reward for you!" Igaram waved his hands in front of himself.</p><p>"Don't worry, we'll protect her." Luffy promised and both Vivi and Igaram looked at him with smiles. Nami pouted a bit, but made a second mental note to <em>negotiate</em> a good price for helping the country of Alabasta out! "Do what you need to do though, we're shipping out immediately." Igaram nodded as he and Vivi walked a bit away from the group to chat and say goodbyes.</p><p>"That just leaves you." Nami eyed the green-eyed woman. Miss Valentine flinched slightly at the orangette's tone. "What's your story, are you an enemy?"</p><p>"I'm part of Baroque Works, an illegal Underworld Bounty Hunter Organization." Miss Valentine spoke up, her arms wrapped around herself, her parasol closed and held limply in her right hand. "I was almost killed twice tonight, once by my own partner and then by that Kuro Kari guy. I'm just <em>done</em>, leave me here if you want; I won't come after you."</p><p>"Your 'Voice' isn't that bad." Luffy spoke up and Miss Valentine blinked at him.</p><p>"What? My voice?" Miss Valentine was confused. Did this powerful rookie like the sound of her voice?</p><p>"Don't worry about it," Nami waved the woman off. "How about you tell us your real name to start?"</p><p>"Sure, why not, it's not like I'll be using the code name anymore." Miss Valentine sighed. "My name is Mikita; I'm originally from West Blue. I was young when I lost my family to a war that tore through our country. Alone and without much to support myself, I joined up with a small Bounty Hunter group. I ate the Kilo Kilo no Mi a few years later. When I went solo as a Bounty Hunter I was making more money, I thought I was on my way to accomplishing my dream. Eventually someone recognized how useful my power was for transporting light packages discreetly." The platinum-blonde exhaled heavily.</p><p>"It was illegal," Nami spoke up and Mikita flinched. "What they had you transporting discreetly was something highly illegal, wasn't it?"</p><p>"Yes," Mikita bowed her head, looking at the rocky soil they stood upon. "I didn't know what it was, I didn't ask, I was making more money per delivery than I usually made from a successful Bounty Hunt. Then the Marines caught wind of the operation. I was photographed and my name was known. A few weeks later I saw my own Wanted Poster. 'Courier' Mikita, with a Seven point Five Million Beri Bounty on my head." Mikita shook her head slightly at the memory. "Since I now had a Bounty of my own, I couldn't Bounty Hunt anymore, at least not legally. The money was gone and I was on the run. Eventually I found myself in the Underworld and joined up with Baroque Works."</p><p>"You said you had a dream?" Luffy's eyes were wide and had a gleam in them.</p><p>"Luffy…" Nami looked at him.</p><p>"She said the word, Nami! She said the word!" Luffy looked excited and Nami pinched the bridge of her nose. "What's your dream?"</p><p>"Before war destroyed our country, my family owned a Sweets Shop." Mikita smiled at the memory. "We were loved throughout the country, especially our chocolates. I learned all the recipes from my parents. I was so excited to help make them. My dream was to use those recipes and make our chocolates the most famous in the entire world! I wanted to make the best chocolates the world had ever known…but then the war took everything away. I thought I'd be able to start my own shop, but then I got duped into being a smuggler and got my Bounty. I've pretty much given up on my old dream now."</p><p>"Don't." Luffy's hands were on her shoulders. Mikita blinked as she looked up into the serious eyes of the straw-hatted pirate. "Never give up on your dreams! Our dreams are what define us! Without dreams the world wouldn't be fun! People would spend their lives just going through the motions! We dream because we live, and we live because we dream! If you give up on your dreams then are you really even living?"</p><p>"What?" Mikita stood stock still as her eyes locked with Luffy's.</p><p>"Join my crew!" Luffy stated and Nami sighed while shaking her head with a fond smile. "We're all dreamers! Come chase your dreams with us! If we have to sail every sea in the world to make your dream come true, then that's what we'll do!" Luffy's wide, bright smile was almost blinding to the platinum-blonde that had given up on ever following her dream again.</p><p>"But, I was your enemy, just a little while ago!" Mikita looked at Luffy like he was crazy.</p><p>"Are you our enemy now?" Luffy tilted his head.</p><p>"Well, no, I guess not anymore." Mikita admitted.</p><p>"Then it's fine! Join my crew, Mikita! Let's chase our dreams together on the seas!" Luffy beamed at her and Mikita felt herself slowly smile reflexively. Her heart felt warm, the memories of her childhood, the happy times spent in the Shop and learning from her parents, they were bubbling up! She felt the joy again! The drive of her discarded dream was returning!</p><p>"Yes, please," Mikita felt tears welling up in her eyes. "Please, Captain Luffy, please let me join your crew!" She bowed to him and Luffy cheered with his fists in the air!</p><p>"Of course!" Luffy exclaimed and Mikita looked up at her new Captain in wonder. "Welcome to the crew, Mikita!"</p><p>"Thank you, Captain!" Mikita felt the tears fall, but there was nothing she could do to stop them. She was being accepted again, her dream supported and recognized! How could she not be emotional?</p><p>"Welcome aboard," Nami smiled at their newest nakama. "It's a fun crew, full of laughter, but training is hard and Luffy doesn't take no for an answer."</p><p>"Huh?" Mikita blinked as she wiped her tears.</p><p>"You'll see!" Nami winked at the green-eyed blonde.</p><p>"Oh yeah," Luffy reached down and picked up the book that had been tossed at his feet. "That guy said I should look through this."</p><p>"Later, Luffy, we should go." Nami reminded her Lover and the Captain nodded. He held the book and it opened in his hand. All three of them blinked at the open book. Nami noticed that the page it had opened to was dog-eared, explaining why the book had opened to this specific page. What the trio saw on the page made all of their hearts skip a beat.</p><p>There on the page, that was black with white writing, instead of the usual white with black writing of regular Wanted Posters. Was the picture of the man that had come to Cactus Island.</p><p>"Nanashi 'the Nobody', Bounty is Nine-Hundred Million Beri…" Nami trailed off as she looked at the plain face. She blinked as she realized the bottom of the Poster had different information than usual. "Devil Fruit: Hoshi Hoshi no Mi (Star Star Fruit): Offering Th-Thr-Three B-Bi-Billion Beri for acquisition?!" The orangette almost dropped the book in shock. The guy's head was worth Nine-Hundred Million Beri, but if you could somehow acquire his Devil Fruit you could get Three Billion Beri for it?! What the hell kind of book had he given Luffy?!</p><p>
  <strong>BOOM</strong>
</p><p>The three startled at the sudden blast and looked out towards the ocean. Igaram had apparently set sail while they were talking, but now all that was left of the boat was driftwood floating in the blazing waters!</p><p>"Igaram!" Vivi screamed at the sight.</p><p>"Damn it!" Luffy growled at seeing what had happened. "We need to get out of here, now!" He quickly ran over to Vivi, the bluenette was practically unresponsive. Luffy didn't have time to waste! He picked the princess up and threw her over his shoulder! The pirate Captain then grabbed Nami's hand and they ran towards the ship with Mikita following closely.</p><p>"Luffy!" Zoro yelled, dragging Sanji and Usopp behind him, both men screaming at him to stop dragging them. The Merry was in sight and the crew was quick to board. In the haste and confusion, no one questioned why a huge duck with a saddle was on their ship. The Going Merry disembarked from Whiskey Peak with Nami expertly plotting their course with the newly set Log Pose.</p><p>None of them could have known they'd be receiving a new visitor very soon.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Luffy and crew have a new nakama, or two technically! Mr. Five is dead and his Devil Fruit has been harvested! This is what the Kuro Kari does! Operating in secrecy and shadows, they acquired and sell Devil Fruits throughout the world of One Piece!</strong>
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  <strong>New crew member! Mikita, the former Miss Valentine, has joined! Maybe the crew won't be as much of a sausage fest this time around?</strong>
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  <strong>How will things continue to change, as the butterfly flaps its wings?</strong>
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  <strong>Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Miss All-Sunday</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! A certain someone makes her appearance! You know her, you love her, and she’ll join come hell or high water! Robin-chwan~!</strong>
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  <strong>You MAY notice a joke from Primordial Vortex’s Fic ‘Supernova’ in this chapter! It makes me giggle and I have permission to use it! </strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 19 – Miss All-Sunday</strong>
</p><p>The Going Merry sailed out of Whiskey Peak’s port. Vivi was hugging the large duck, apparently he was called Carue, and petting his feathers. The princess was still clearly shaken up about what had happened to Igaram. Luffy was using his Observation in conjunction with his Devil Fruit, a useful trick he’d learned over time, and keeping an eye out for any other enemies.</p><p>“What do you mean we're leaving already, you shitty Captain?!” Sanji demanded, barely restraining himself from throttling Luffy. “This town is amazing! We should stay longer! This is the Grand Line! Who knows when we'll get a chance to relax and unwind again! Did you see how many pretty girls there were?!”</p><p>Nami’s eye twitched as she walked up behind Sanji; she reared back her fist and slammed it into the chef’s head! The orangette wailed on the blonde for a moment and left him bruised, bleeding, and with comically large lumps on his head. Vivi and Mikita both gaped as they witnessed what Nami could do to the men of the crew.</p><p>“I gave you the benefit of the doubt, Sanji! Way to disappoint! I can't believe you <strong>actually</strong> fell for that obvious trap!” Nami berated the chef. Even while beaten and being yelled at, he still had a heart-shaped eye for Nami! When the orangette turned her gaze on Usopp, the Gunman was already climbing up to the crow’s nest to keep watch. So at the very least, Usopp realized the situation and was taking his position right away. Nami exhaled and calmed herself down; she needed to get more information. Turning to their new nakama and new shipmate, she started asking questions, “Alright, aside from that, what can we expect out of Baroque Works, you two? How many agents do you think they might send after us?”</p><p>“There are around two thousand Baroque Works members as far as I know. Within these waters, there are other ‘trap towns’ made up of around one hundred to one-hundred-fifty Bounty Hunters. We might even warrant a thousand of them sent after us!” Vivi answered the Navigator, her voice steady as she conveyed the possible threat.</p><p>“I'm not so sure.” Mikita shook her head, “Just think about it. All of the plans are centered at Alabasta. It wouldn’t make senseto move half of Baroque Works’ manpower away from there. Until the Unluckies inform the Boss of what’s going on, there would be no reason to issue such orders, would there?” She looked contemplative.</p><p>“Who’re the Unluckies?” Zoro blinked, he had no idea.</p><p>“That’s right! Usopp shot them down!” Vivi’s eyes brightened up. “Without the main communicators for in-organization espionage, we should have plenty of time to keep Sir Crocodile in the dark!”</p><p>“EEEEEHHHHH?!” Was the response from everybody, barring Luffy, as they all turned bugged-out eyes on the princess!</p><p>“Oh no!” Vivi clapped her hands over her mouth. “I’m sorry! I’m so sorry! It just slipped out!”</p><p>“A Warlord?!” Mikita screamed as she held her head in panic! “Mr. Zero is Sir Crocodile of the Seven Warlords?!”</p><p>“I’m sorry!” Vivi bowed in apology.</p><p>“Eh, it’s fine.” Luffy shrugged, making everyone turn to face him. “We’d have probably run afoul of one of them eventually anyway.”</p><p>“Knowing Luffy, he’s probably right.” Nami sighed, her hand on her forehead. “Besides, we already agreed to take Vivi back home. But I’m <strong>so</strong> going to get some damn good compensation for this!”</p><p>“If it happens, it happens.” Zoro shrugged, a Warlord would make a good challenge to see how his strength was progressing!</p><p>“Geez, why couldn’t we have avoided Warlords for a while?” Usopp lamented from up in the crow’s nest. “Seriously, Luffy, only you could have made a Warlord our enemy by the very first island in the Grand Line!”</p><p>“Shishishi!” Luffy laughed while Usopp pointed at him.</p><p>“By the way…” Sanji spoke up, his injuries from Nami seemingly gone, “Who is <em>this</em> lovely lady?!” The chef twirled over to Mikita with a smile and heart-shaped eyes! Mikita took a half-step back from the man that was suddenly in her personal space.</p><p>“That’s Mikita, she’s our new nakama!” Luffy smiled widely at the platinum-blonde. Mikita felt herself smile back automatically at her new Captain.</p><p>“I knew you were a good Captain!” Sanji praised Luffy, who blinked at his sudden shift in mood from almost cursing him out a while ago.</p><p>“Hmm?” Luffy made a noise and Nami, the closest to him, looked at her lover curiously. “The curly-hair guy, he’s alive. I couldn’t sense him for a bit; maybe he was unconscious?”</p><p>“Igaram is alive?!” Vivi was suddenly in front of Luffy, her hands grabbing at his vest while she was practically pressed against him. “He survived that massive explosion?”</p><p>“Um, yeah, if Igaram is the guy with the super-rolled hair.” Luffy nodded to the bluenette. Vivi’s eyes watered, tears of relief nearly flooding from them. She buried her face into Luffy’s chest as her happy tears fell. Luffy patted her back gently and Nami smiled at him. After a bit Vivi pulled back, her cheeks red from a mixture of her tears and her embarrassment of having clung to Luffy like that. Clearing her eyes she turned to look out over the ship, mostly to ease the awkwardness she felt.</p><p>“Oh, there's going to be fog up ahead!” They were heading towards a large fog bank as they sailed further along. “It's always foggy around here near the dawn.” Vivi informed them.</p><p>“I’ll take care of it.” Nami assured the princess as she moved to guide the Going Merry through the dense mist. A few minutes of cautious sailing by Nami, and they were past the danger.</p><p>“By the way…” Luffy’s voice had a teasing quality to it that made Nami, Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji flinch. “We have a visitor.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder to point at a woman sitting on the railing overlooking the lower deck. “She was able to board the ship, walk up the steps, and then sit down without any of you noticing her. That means you need more awareness.” All of the crew, barring Mikita, who was new, and Vivi, who didn’t know what he was talking about, suddenly looked a bit blue in the face. “I’m upping your Observation training!” He smiled at his nakama. <strong>None</strong> of them returned his smile at all!</p><p>“M-Miss All-Sunday…” Mikita stuttered out as she looked at the tanned woman. She was a beautiful, dark-haired woman with clear blue eyes. She had long limbs and even sitting down, it was clear that she was tall, probably taller than any of the crew, actually. She wore a purple corset which exposed her cleavage since it was only held together at the front by strings, and had a matching skirt with white tassels along the bottom. On her left arm was a white-and-black armband with the letter 'N' on the golden medallion at the center. It also had white tassels surrounding the bottom. She wore a pair of matching, low-heeled boots on her feet. Completing her outfit was a matching, purple cowgirl hat. She had a thin, well-defined nose, and currently wore an expression of amusement on her face.</p><p>“How are we this morning, Miss Valentine?” Miss All-Sunday’s amused expression didn't change as she held back a light giggle over the trembling, former Officer Agent. “Should I take this to be your resignation from Baroque Works?”</p><p>“Well… It does seem that way.” Mikita was clearly forcing a smile, trying to project confidence she didn't really feel. She glanced towards Luffy, seeing the bright smile on his face as he looked at her increased her resolve. “Yeah, I’m out. Tell the Boss. Mark me for death. Whatever you have to do! I’m a Pirate now!” She declared with conviction to her former superior.</p><p>“Alright then.” Miss All-Sunday kept her amused grin.</p><p>“Wait, she’s Miss All-Sunday?” Nami looked curious and amused herself. “Does that mean there’s a regular Miss Sunday too? Or did you guys just run out of holidays?" Miss All-Sunday's grin widened slightly at the spunky orangette.</p><p>“Sir Crocodile didn’t put very much thought into his organization’s naming scheme, I’m afraid.” Miss All-Sunday remarked. The woman glanced around the Going Merry, taking in the faces of the crew. “This is a lovely ship you have.”</p><p>“Thank you.” Nami grinned while taking the lead on the conversation with their supposed enemy. Luffy looked far too amused at their chat so far to stop them. “Love your outfit by the way. Purple is definitely a good color on you. I have a similar outfit myself, in blue though.” That got a blink of surprise from the tall woman. Nami had to hold back a chuckle. “I’ll go ahead and guess that you're Crocodile's partner?”</p><p>“That's right.” Miss All-Sunday confirmed indifferently. “I take it the man that noticed me coming aboard is the Captain?”</p><p>“Yep,” Nami chirped with a smile. “Monkey D. Luffy, the Captain of the Straw Hat Pirates!” The orangette gestured to her lover with a grin. Luffy played along and removed his straw hat, before giving Miss All-Sunday a full bow. The overly dramatic flourish of the gesture made the amused grin on her pretty face widen a bit more. Luffy chuckled as he straightened up and placed his hat back on his head.</p><p>“What are you doing here, Miss All-Sunday?!” Vivi growled at the woman, clearly she wasn’t a fan of the lackadaisical nature of the conversation. “We know you allowed us to follow you to learn Crocodile's identity! Why did you tell him we knew?! What's your game?!”</p><p>“Game?” Miss All-Sunday chuckled lightly. “Why, I just had to help you. Such an enticing story, is it not? A princess goes undercover to save her country! It’s like something out of a novel.” Luffy blinked at the mood shift of the conversation. Was everyone in the Grand Line dishonest with themselves? “It really is too bad you're bound to fail.”</p><p>“Don't you dare underestimate us!” Vivi grit her teeth, reaching for her weapons of choice, her two Peacock Slashers.</p><p>“Please don't point such dangerous things at me.” The tanned woman sighed. In an instant both of Vivi’s weapons were knocked from her hands and landed on the deck. No one had seen what had happened, except Luffy, and the rest of the crew started reaching for weapons.</p><p>“A Devil Fruit!” Vivi gasped as she gazed up at Miss All-Sunday.</p><p>“But what kind?” Nami questioned as she fluidly assembled her staff.</p><p>“Don't get excited.” Miss All-Sunday smiled calmly at the group. “I'm not here on assignment. There's no reason for us to fight. But I must admit, I was curious to meet the man with the highest starting bounty to ever come from the East Blue.” Her blue eyes turned their full attention onto Luffy. “I must confess myself a little disenchanted though. You haven't said much, Monkey D. Luffy.”</p><p>Luffy’s hand shot up and clasped something faster than most of the crew could follow. Everyone gasped when they noticed Luffy’s hand was holding a hand that was sprouting from his own shoulder! Luffy’s other hand short up just as fast; and now the Captain was holding two identical hands in his own. Blinking, the crew watched as a third hand and forearm formed from Luffy’s back, much slower than before, and reached for his head. Luffy's hat was lifted off his head, and gently tossed towards Miss All-Sunday. It spun through the air towards the ravenette woman. She caught the brim of his hat carefully and placed it on top of her own cowgirl hat. She was expertly masking the shock of seeing this rookie able to not only notice her power, but stop it twice. This was especially surprising when she was using it so subtly.</p><p>“Well that’s just not fair, I only have two hands.” Luffy remarked while the crew just blinked. In the time it had taken them to blink, Luffy was now sitting next to Miss All-Sunday! He released one of her Devil Fruit created hands and took back his straw hat. Once it was back on his head he smiled happily. “You have soft skin.” He complimented the woman he was now sitting next to.</p><p>“Thank you.” Miss All-Sunday accepted the compliment, even as she struggled harshly to not let her shock show on her face. She had <strong>never</strong>been overwhelmed by speed or strength. Not a single time, since she had embraced life as an outlaw. She had often claimed that neither of those qualities mattered against her, owing to her own strengths. She'd dealt with dozens of opponents, all of whom she had been able to beat, despite said advantages. Even a few carnivorous Zoan over the years hadn’t been match for her. She'd trained her reflexes and perception as high as she could get them in the last two decades.</p><p>
  <em>But she didn’t even see him move.</em>
</p><p>A tiny bead of sweat ran down the back of her neck as she came to terms with how ridiculously fast Luffy was. Not even the CP9 agents she'd seen so long ago could move that fast! With years of practice, she had her calm, unbothered smile back on her face. “Hmm, perhaps I was a bit abrupt in saying you were bound to fail, Princess.”</p><p>“Only my nakama can touch my hat.” Luffy informed her with a smile. “So don’t do that again, okay?”</p><p>“I see; my apologies then.” Miss All-Sunday turned to face him. “I had no idea it was so important to you.”</p><p>“It’s fine.” Luffy grinned, “What's your name?”</p><p>“Hmm?” Miss All-Sunday’s smile widened a little. “You already know my name.”</p><p>“I meant your real name.” Luffy deadpanned. “I don’t really care about that codename stuff.” Her eyebrow quirked up a bit and her amused smile widened a fraction. “I'm pretty sure you don't care about it much either.”</p><p>“Oh?” Miss All-Sunday looked at Luffy for a long moment. This was certainly a <em>different</em> situation she had found herself in. The smiling face on his Wanted Poster apparently belied a person that had a natural instinct for figuring people out. This was much different than how she’d imagined her little <em>visit</em> would be going. But that left her with the all-important question.</p><p>What to do now?</p><p>Simply letting them sail onwards wasn't the worst idea. The island they were headed toward was a known deathtrap. Hundreds, if not thousands, of various types of crews had met their end at Little Garden throughout the ages. This pirate crew would most-likely follow the same path. Maybe? Perhaps not though, those crews had to find their way to Little Garden somehow. There was bound to be a working Log Pose somewhere on the island that had reset long ago. If this crew was lucky, they could probably find one. That left a lot to Fate and Chance. Something she’d stopped doing quite a long time ago.</p><p>She recalled their Wanted Posters. Luffy’s bounty was Sixty Million, The orangette’s was Sixteen Million, the swordsman’s was Twenty Five Million, the blonde’s was Twenty Million, and the long-nosed gunman’s bounty stood at Fifteen Million Beri. All in all their combined bounty eclipsed Crocodile’s Eighty One Million. But that was back when Crocodile had joined the Warlords. It had been close to eight years since then. Not to mention the Sand Logia tended to play his cards close to his chest. If the World Government had known <strong>everything</strong> that Crocodile was capable of, and everything he’d done, she was certain his bounty would be well over One Hundred Million, maybe even higher than that.</p><p>‘It is also Crocodile’s position as one of the Seven Warlords that keeps me out of the World Government’s sight.’ She mused to herself. Under the Warlord System, the Warlord had their bounty frozen, this also applied to their subordinates. Any member of a Warlord’s crew was also left unscrutinized. It was this protection that had kept her from being discovered for the last couple of years. Without a powerful, recognized protector, she’d be back on the run again. She’d had more than enough of that life already.</p><p>“You're not wrong, Monkey D. Luffy.” Miss All-Sunday responded with a shrug. Vivi's eyes widened at the admission from the woman. “Why’re you so surprised, Princess? Did you think I would have let you follow me if I was truly dedicated to Crocodile’s cause?”</p><p>“B-but…” Vivi took a moment to process this new information. “But why then?!” She demanded. “Why are you helping him to destroy my kingdom?!”</p><p>“He has information I need.” Miss All-Sunday informed the bluenette coolly. “Along with resources and protection. I have my own goals to accomplish. It was merely bad luck that those goals coincided with Crocodile's own.”</p><p>“What the hell are you after then? I thought you joined him to be his queen!” Vivi nearly spat at the tanned woman.</p><p>“Please never say something so revolting again.” Miss All-Sunday couldn't <em>entirely</em> hold back the look of disgust on her face. There were things that even <em>she </em>couldn’t maintain her calm about. An aura that promised death engulfed her form. “<strong>Ever</strong>.”</p><p>“Y-Yes, ma’am!” Vivi was trembling, while using Sanji as a human shield. The chef seemed perfectly happy about this, however!</p><p>“So, what is it that you want?” Luffy asked while snickering at Vivi's antics. “I noticed we haven’t gotten your name yet either…” The death aura vanished as if it had never been there, her grin becoming amused again.</p><p>“Oh, you seem to have quite the interest in me, Captain.” Miss All-Sunday mentioned coyly. She uncrossed her legs before crossing them again, her right leg now over her left. Maybe Monkey D. Luffy still had a common <em>weakness</em> that she could exploit if necessary.</p><p>“You're interesting.” Luffy shrugged. “But, just like Vivi was when we met her, you’re not being honest with us…or yourself.”</p><p>“I <em>am</em> technically your enemy,” Miss All-Sunday reminded him. “Isn’t it expected of me to be dishonest with you?” She noticed his gaze hadn’t left her eyes during her little attempt to tease him. It seemed seduction might not be the weakness she’d thought it would be.</p><p>“Eh, I guess?” Luffy nonchalantly replied. “Just know I’m coming for Crocodile; if you aren’t my enemy or Vivi’s, then you’re fine.”</p><p>“Luffy…” Vivi murmured, her hand covering her mouth, as she felt warm tears in the corners of her eyes.</p><p>“I assure you, Captain, my goals are entirely different from Crocodile’s.” Miss All-Sunday grinned at him. “His are far more…violent, than my own.”</p><p>“Good to know.” Luffy chuckled as he slid off the railing and landed on the deck below. Miss All-Sunday copied him, noticing once again that he didn’t try and catch a peek. He didn’t seem the type to be completely uninterested. An iron will, perhaps? The duo walked over to the edge of the ship, spotting the ‘voice’ that Luffy had noticed when Miss All-Sunday had showed up. It turned out to be a giant turtle! “Do you need help down?” He asked the woman beside him. Makino had taught them that it was polite to offer girls help with things.</p><p>“Thank you, Captain, but I’ll be fine.” Miss All-Sunday gave him a brief smile, one that seemed a bit more genuine than the others. She leapt over the edge and landed easily on the back of the large turtle. “I do hope you survive your journey to Alabasta, Monkey D. Luffy, I’m sure you’ll make things very…<em>interesting</em>.”</p><p>“Shishishi!” Luffy chuckled with his wide grin in place.</p><p>“Miss All-Sunday?” Nami called out to the tall beauty. She looked up, locking eyes with the orangette woman. “If you want to seduce my lover, you’ll have to get to know him first.” The orangette grinned salaciously. “And be <strong>a lot</strong> more direct!” Nami gently took Luffy’s chin and turned him to face her. Their lips met in a deep, passionate kiss, that quickly involved tongues before she pulled away; a small strand of saliva connecting their lips for a moment before it broke. “Be seeing you!” She waved while giving the ravenette a wink. She pulled Luffy after her and they disappeared from her sight.</p><p>“Very <em>interesting </em>indeed.” Miss All-Sunday chuckled to herself as she directed Banchi towards Alabasta with the Eternal Pose she had.</p><p>On the Going Merry, Sanji was sulking slightly, as he did when he was reminded of Luffy and Nami’s relationship. Once Miss All-Sunday’s ‘voice’ had vanished from Luffy’s Observation range, the boosted one he got from using his Devil Fruit, he turned to face their two new shipmates.</p><p>“It seems we’re in the clear for now.” Luffy informed everyone. “You can relax now, Usopp, good work.” Vivi and Valerie glanced at the Gunman up in the crow’s nest. The young man’s shoulders sagged as he exhaled heavily. Had he been ready to shoot Miss All-Sunday that whole time?!</p><p>“You never gave the signal that she was a threat, so I was just waiting.” Usopp called down to Luffy. “Man, my shoulders are stiff.” He rolled his shoulders a few times to work any kinks out before they could fully form.</p><p>“Now, let’s get you two settled, and then we’ll celebrate Mikita joining the crew!” Luffy cheered, receiving cheers of agreement in return. Nami took over from there, taking Mikita and Vivi to the women’s quarters. Luffy smiled as he quickly took his special seat on Merry’s figure head. Sanji practically danced towards the kitchen, he was on an all-time high at having two lovely ladies joining them on their voyage! Zoro took rounds to check the rigging and make sure no changes were needed. They should still be in Cactus Island’s stable climate for a while, but they’d all learned that it was better to be prepared when it came to the Grand Line’s weather.</p><p>-Women’s Quarters-</p><p>“Alright, Vivi, you know how this works already.” Nami smiled at the bluenette. “You can have the same bunk as last time.”</p><p>“Thank you, Nami.” Vivi smiled back at her new friend. She walked over to the bunk she’d slept in on their trip to Cactus Island and sat on the bed. It was still soft, comfortable, and so relaxing.</p><p>“Now, Mikita, choose either of the other two unoccupied bunks and it’ll be yours. The one in the far back is mine, though I don’t use it too much.” Nami giggled a bit at the end. She outright laughed when she noticed both Vivi’s and Mikita’s cheeks turning a bright red.</p><p>“I’ll just take the one across from yours then.” Mikita decided as she sat on the bed directly across from Nami’s.</p><p>“Alright then, this is the accordion wall,” Nami pulled the wall out a bit to show her new nakama. “Whenever you want some privacy, just pull it closed and you can latch it in place.” Mikita observed the mechanism and nodded in understanding after seeing it once.</p><p>“Gonna have to do laundry every day.” Mikita noted as she realized that she’d left her only few spare changes of clothes on the small ship that she and Mr. Five had traveled to Cactus Island on. “That’ll be a pain.”</p><p>“I didn’t even think about that.” Vivi remarked, her brown eyes wide in realization. Looking down at her, now only, outfit made her sigh.</p><p>“I’m not going to leave my nakama to suffer.” Nami shook her head with a smile. “We’re all pretty close in size, you can borrow a few things from my wardrobe until we get to an island with some stores.”</p><p>“Thank you, Nami!” Mikita skipped up off the bed and hugged her new nakama tightly. Nami laughed as she returned the hug.</p><p>“Thank you for the help, Nami.” Vivi smiled only to let out a cute ‘eep’ when she was pulled into the current hug. The bluenette couldn’t help but laugh after a moment though. The Straw Hats truly were good people.</p><p>A short time later and the celebration for new nakama began in full!</p><p>Luffy was stuffing his face. Sanji was ‘noodling’ about the deck checking on Nami, Mikita, and Vivi. Zoro was drinking and eating far enough away from Luffy to keep all his food. Usopp was singing random shanties from the crow’s nest. Vivi was laughing along with the Gunman’s antics along with Mikita. Nami was happily enjoying the food and some booze while nestled up to Luffy. It was getting into the late night hours when the party started to wind down.</p><p>“Let me show you guys my thanks!” Mikita smiled brightly at her new crew. She made her way into the kitchen and Sanji was more than happy to show her where everything was. “Is this the only kind of chocolate you guys have?” She questioned the chef.</p><p>“At the moment, yes; I’ll make sure to buy whatever your heart desires when we land on a civilized island next time, Miki-chwan~!” Sanji promised with hearts for eyes.</p><p>“Calm down a bit, you spaz! Kyahaha!” Mikita laughed at Sanji’s antics as she set about her own cooking. Several minutes later she walked out of the kitchen with a tray. On the tray were slices of mikan from Nami’s trees, all of them drizzled with a chocolate sauce. “Come and get them!” She smiled at her nakama.</p><p>“Ooh!” Luffy picked one of the slices up and popped it into his mouth. Chewing he let the flavors blend on his tongue. “That’s good!” He exclaimed and Mikita’s face burst into a beaming smile! “I didn’t know you could mix chocolate and fruit!”</p><p>“Just takes the right kind of know-how!” Mikita giggled as Nami took one of the slices. The orangette Navigator savored the flavor of the mikan and the mingling taste of the chocolate drizzle.</p><p>“Mikita,” Nami started and Mikita felt her back straighten involuntarily. Had she messed up?! Did Nami not like the dessert?! “I think I love you!” Nami beamed at the platinum-blonde. Mikita let out the breath she didn’t know she was holding at Nami’s vocal approval.</p><p>“Kyahaha! Eat up! There’s plenty more!” Mikita announced joyfully! It was wonderful to have real nakama for the first time in so very long! The rest of the crew came to try the dessert and each gave their approval one after another! The platinum-blonde pirate had to hold back happy tears!</p><p>“Alright everybody!” Luffy announced loudly. “Let’s get to bed, Mikita and Vivi you’re not on rotation tonight, so get your rest! You’ll need it! Training begins bright and early tomorrow!”</p><p>“Training…” Vivi muttered, a bit of blue on her face.</p><p>“What’s wrong with training?” Mikita questioned as they made their way back to the women’s quarters. They’d both get a nice warm shower before bed and really enjoy those soft mattresses!</p><p>“You haven’t <em>seen</em> what they call training…” Vivi shivered and Mikita’s eyes widened at the princess’ reaction. How bad was this going to be?!</p><p>“Tomorrow Luffy will get you both to the starting line~” Nami sing-songed as she walked passed them towards the Captain’s Quarters. “Sleep well!” She waved at them before heading up the stairs to the upper deck.</p><p>“The hell does the ‘starting line’ mean?” Mikita asked Vivi.</p><p>“No idea,” Vivi shook her head, her blue locks gently moving back and forth. “But I’m not sure I’m going to like it…”</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>-Omake-</strong>
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  <strong>Convincing Robin and securing Mikita</strong>
</p><p>“Oh, you seem to have quite the interest in me, Captain.” Miss All-Sunday mentioned coyly. She uncrossed her legs before crossing them again, her right leg now over her left. Maybe Monkey D. Luffy still had a common <em>weakness</em> that she could exploit if necessary.</p><p>“You're interesting.” Luffy shrugged. “But, just like Vivi was when we met her, you’re not being honest with us…or yourself.”</p><p>“I’m sure you could make her honest, Luffy~” Nami grinned as she wrapped an arm around Mikita’s shoulders and walked towards her lover and Miss All-Sunday. “You could probably get her real name out of her too~”</p><p>“Oh?” Miss All-Sunday cocked an eyebrow at the confident orangette. “How would he do that?”</p><p>“Luffy…” Nami grinned as she hopped up to the railing and whispered into his ear.</p><p>“Hmm?” Luffy blinked as he listened. “Are you sure, Nami?”</p><p>“Absolutely!” Nami grinned at him.</p><p>“Alright then.” Luffy grinned widely.</p><p>“Mikita, can you walk up the stairs to the upper deck, please?” Nami smiled at their new nakama.</p><p>“Umm, okay…” Mikita nodded as she walked up the stairs.</p><p>“Come with us!” Luffy smiled brightly at Miss All-Sunday.</p><p>“What?” Miss All-Sunday blinked at the request.</p><p>“Come with us!” Luffy repeated. “Be our nakama!”</p><p>“What?!” Vivi yelled out.</p><p>“I’m afraid that’s not possible, Captain.” Miss All-Sunday shook her head.</p><p>“Not with that attitude it’s not!” Nami laughed as she walked passed Mikita and towards the Captain’s quarters.</p><p>“I don’t follow?” Miss All-Sunday blinked in confusion.</p><p>“You’ll see!” Luffy promised with a grin. Then he proceeded to pick her up off the railing and gently toss her over his shoulder. He was walking towards Mikita before Robin had fully comprehended her new position!</p><p>“Captain?” Mikita blinked at Luffy as he approached her with Miss All-Sunday over his left shoulder.</p><p>“You too, Mikita!” Luffy laughed as he gently hoisted the platinum-blond over his right shoulder. “Nami’s idea!” He quickly carried them both towards his room.</p><p>“Wait a minute!” Miss All-Sunday began to struggle a bit. “Put me down! I’ll use force if I have to!” She threatened.</p><p>Her threat might have had a bit more bite, if she hadn’t made it only after Luffy had taken her through the door that Nami was holding open for them. The orangette quickly followed them in and locked the door behind her! Soon enough some rather…<em>naughty</em>…sounds were coming from the Captain’s quarters!</p><p>Luffy and Nami had quickly secured Mikita’s love and loyalty! They even managed to find out Miss All-Sunday’s name was actually Nico Robin! Though that took a bit longer! Getting her to become their nakama like Mikita had taken until almost sunrise!</p><p>Thus began the Harem of the future Pirate King!</p><p>
  <strong>-End Omake-</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Luffy and crew have met Miss All-Sunday! Mikita has become a Straw Hat! It’s been a good day! So of course they have to party! Now they’re heading for Little Garden! How will the story play out with these changes? Will the Straw Hats have another unexpected visitor on the Island? Yes, in Mr. Three and Miss Goldenweek. Also ‘Yes’ in two <em>other</em> surprise arrivals!</strong>
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  <strong>Who are they? Well, maybe if you knew what Miss Goldenweek’s name and epithet were you could puzzle it out? Or you could just read the title of the story again and think about that! *Cackles in foreshadow teasing* How much will really change?</strong>
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  <strong>Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. Training</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! As the Straw Hats sail towards Little Garden, they have a few days to work on their skills. What will be the results of Luffy getting Mikita and Vivi to the ‘starting line’?</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 20 – Training</strong>
</p><p>The next day, the two new girls of the crew were blinking blearily at Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hats. Mikita and Vivi were, apparently, not the early morning type. Also, Mikita might have a slight hangover from the near day long party yesterday. Vivi had only indulged moderately and looked fine, aside from being tired at the early wake up.</p><p>“Captain… Can't I at least wait for the medicine to kick in for this headache?” Mikita groaned, gently rubbing her head.</p><p>“You’re a bit of a lightweight, huh?” Nami chuckled at her new nakama. She had drunk more than Mikita, by a good margin, and had only gotten buzzed. Her alcohol tolerance was very high.</p><p>“Don't worry, Miki-chwan~,” Sanji’s heart-eye was in full effect. “I bought the good stuff at Loguetown! It shouldn’t be much longer!”</p><p>“Loud!” Mikita hissed at the chef. Sanji looked sheepish as he quickly clammed up. “Can someone turn off the sun?” She groaned. The platinum-blonde was debating if her parasol should keep being used to hold her upright or if she should just lie down on the deck and open it to shield her eyes from the sun.</p><p>“No slacking, its training time!” Luffy exclaimed with a bright grin. Vivi personally thought that such a grin shouldn’t be allowed so early in the morning. But the bluenette had agreed to follow the rules of the Going Merry while she was on board.</p><p>“So, what’s first today?” Vivi questioned; she’d been forced to be a part of the Straw Hats’ training on their trip to Cactus Island. Luffy often varied the exercises he had his crew partake in.</p><p>“Well, first, I have to get you and Mikita to the starting line.” Luffy grinned as he approached the two of them. Both young women blinked at Luffy, neither understanding what he was talking about. “Now, no matter what happens, don’t pass out, alright?”</p><p>“Pass out?” Mikita blinked at her Captain. Her headache had literally just faded! Now Luffy was going to do something to possibly make her pass out?! This was just to get to the <em>starting line</em>?!</p><p>“Luffy, what’re you going to do?” Vivi looked unsure about what was going to happen.</p><p>“Don’t pass out!” Luffy grinned brightly at them. Then, in a split second, his face changed entirely! Gone was the friendly young man they’d known as Luffy. In his place was the force of the world! Or at least that’s what it felt like when a wave of invisible power slammed into their senses!</p><p>Vivi felt her body shake from the force! She couldn’t stop the shaking! She couldn’t hear anything but her own heartbeat, thundering in her ears! She felt sweat break out instantly! She was panicking! Her legs felt weak, she was going to collapse! She couldn’t raise her arms, the limbs only trembling violently as they remained at her sides. She felt herself fading. She was going to pass out! As her vision got blurry, she saw the image of Crocodile in her mind. This was followed by an image of her father, then Pell, Igaram, Chaka, her country!</p><p><em>‘No!’</em> Vivi screamed in her own mind! She screamed against the force pressing down on her! She wouldn’t fall! She wouldn’t fail! She was going to save Alabasta! The pressure decreased a bit, something pushing back against the onslaught of force.</p><p>Vivi didn’t notice, since her sight was blurred and her hearing deafened by her own heartbeat, but Luffy’s eyes widened as he felt a force pushing back against his Conqueror’s Haki.</p><p>Mikita was no better. The green-eyed blonde had felt her body lock up immediately. She broke out into a cold sweat as tremors racked her body. Her heartrate spiked! She could hear only the blood in her ears. It felt like the weight of the world was pressing down on her head! As if the vast ocean was suddenly <em>too small</em> with Luffy in it! Her vision went blurry and she barely registered her knees hitting the deck. It was only her grip on her parasol keeping her from collapsing entirely. She was going to be crushed at this rate!</p><p>Then, like a passing breeze, the force disappeared and both women were able to take in a much-needed breath. Mikita and Vivi gasped, both taking in deep, greedy breaths. They were both still trembling, sweat on their foreheads, but they were awake. Vivi was still standing, which impressed the rest of the Straw Hats. The bluenette had tears trailing from each eye, said eyes still bleary and unfocused as well. But she’d stood up to Luffy’s Conqueror’s Haki without falling.</p><p>“W-wh-what w-was that?!” Mikita stuttered out, her headache was back and worse than before! She blinked as her vision cleared and she looked up at Luffy.</p><p>“That was Haki,” Luffy grinned at her, kneeling down and offering her his hand. “Conqueror’s Haki to be specific,” He explained as she took his offered hand and let him help her back to her feet.</p><p>“That doesn’t really answer my question…” Mikita gave him a lopsided smile.</p><p>“I’ll explain it as soon as Vivi is back with us.” Luffy promised as he moved over to the princess and gently put his hand on her shoulder.</p><p>“Huh?” Vivi blinked and her eyes met Luffy’s. Seeing his grin, she couldn’t help but smile back, even just a little. “What just happened?”</p><p>“Well, you see,” Luffy chuckled as he explained Haki to Mikita and Vivi. The pair both had to ask for clarification on a few things during the explanation. But after several minutes they understood the concept.</p><p>“So anyone can learn how to do this?” Vivi looked amazed at what Luffy had awakened in her. She gazed at her hands, not feeling the strength Luffy spoke of, but knowing the potential was there.</p><p>“I’ve never heard of this before.” Mikita shook her head. The rest of the Straw Hats all nodded along with her. None of them had heard of it either; until Luffy had shown them, of course.</p><p>“Using Haki is unheard of in the Blues.” Luffy agreed as he recounted his lessons. “In the first half of the Grand Line it’s pretty rare. In the second half though, a majority of the Pirates and Marines have trained to use it. I want all of my nakama to be proficient in its use by the time we get to the halfway point, if possible.”</p><p>“The majority?” Mikita trailed off a bit. She knew of the powerful Pirates that called the ‘New World’ home. If they could do the stuff that Luffy spoke of…it was a good thing she’d stayed on <strong>this</strong> side of the Grand Line!</p><p>“You really impressed me, Vivi!” Nami smiled as she put her arm around the bluenette’s shoulders. “I didn’t expect you to stand tall against Luffy’s Haki like that! Good job!”</p><p>“Thank you,” Vivi looked down at the deck shyly, her cheeks lightly pink. “I just didn’t want to fail. I felt like if I fell, then I wouldn’t be able to save my country.”</p><p>“You didn’t just stand up, Vivi.” Luffy smiled brightly at her. “You pushed back!”</p><p>“What?” Vivi blinked, not understanding what Luffy was saying.</p><p>“You pushed back against my Conqueror’s Haki.” Luffy was still all smiles. “You have Conqueror’s Haki too!”</p><p>“What?!” The entire crew yelled in shock, including Vivi herself!</p><p>“Shishishishi!” Luffy laughed at the dumbfounded looks on his nakama’s faces.</p><p>“B-but didn’t you say only like one in a million people have Conqueror’s Haki?” Vivi seemed to be caught between happiness, confusion, and denial.</p><p>“Yeah, you’re apparently one of them.” Luffy shrugged, not really thinking of the implications for Vivi beyond having to help her learn to control it.</p><p>“I…I need to sit down.” Vivi mumbled and Nami gently helped her to the stairs so she could do just that.</p><p>“Okay, once everyone is ready, we’ll start training!” Luffy grinned at his nakama. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten about upping your Observation training either!” He chuckled at the glares he received in return!</p><p>It was only a few minutes later that Vivi stood up. She looked determined and ready. With a nod to Luffy, the training began! She would quickly lose that ready look as she panted for breath from the exercise!</p><p>“Come on guys!” Luffy laughed as he led laps around the Going Merry’s deck. The rest of them all gave various replies. Some were positive, others not so positive.</p><p>“Right,” Zoro replied, fully focused on the run.</p><p>“Whatever,” Sanji shrugged as he easily kept pace.</p><p>“I’m…trying…” Usopp breathed heavily.</p><p>“How many more laps?” Nami questioned, before pushing Usopp forward again. Anytime he slowed down, she shoved him to keep pace.</p><p>“Fuck you…” Mikita huffed and puffed, barely able to keep up behind Nami.</p><p>“How…do you…do this…everyday?” Vivi was also breathing heavily as she brought up the rear.</p><p>“Shishishishi!” Luffy laughed at his nakama. “You’ll get used to it!”</p><p>After laps it was time for a quick break. Everyone got water and caught their breath for a bit. Once their heartrates were even again, Luffy immediately resumed the exercise.</p><p>“Jumping jacks next!” Luffy called out and everyone lined up on the deck. Sanji, Zoro, and Usopp were up front, while Nami, Mikita, and Vivi were in the back. Luffy started and made sure they all stayed at his pace. If one was observant, and not trying to keep breathing from the continuous exercise, they might notice the flirting going on between Luffy and Nami.</p><p>Nami grinned, maintaining her breath through her nose and exhaling through her mouth. She caught Luffy’s eyes on her again and relished in his gaze. She knew her tits were bouncing from the jumping jacks. Even the sports bra she was wearing couldn’t keep her buxom breasts immobile. She winked at him as they continued. She occasionally snuck glances at Mikita and Vivi too. Inadvertently, or on purpose, leading Luffy’s eyes to the other women as well. Both were borrowing clothes from Nami right now. Vivi was in her own shorts but wearing a sports bra and a blue shirt of Nami’s. Likewise, Mikita was borrowing a pair of shorts and a sports bra from Nami, along with a yellow tank top. It was a good thing they were all close in size, or the sports bras wouldn’t have fit the other two. Watching the other women’s <em>blessed</em> bosoms bouncing was a quick little distraction.</p><p>Another short break after the jumping jacks was followed by various stretches. Toe touch, leg stretches, arm and shoulder stretches, and back stretches. Sanji had quite the remarkable flexibility, able to move his legs a full one-hundred-eighty degrees for a split. High kicks required such flexibility though, so Luffy wasn’t all that surprised. Usopp and Zoro weren’t that flexible, but neither of them was stiff as they went through the stretches. Nami and Vivi bent backwards at the waist, both women able to stretch until their heads were below their waist level. Mikita copied them but let out an ‘ooh~’ as her back popped nicely. She didn’t even know she was this flexible!</p><p>The stretching turned out to be the easiest part of the exercise. What followed was a grueling gauntlet of push-ups, sit ups, lunges, chin ups, and leg lifts. As they rested from the gauntlet, Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji fetched the weights from the storage room. Seeing the large weights made both Vivi and Mikita pale. Zoro placed a large bar across his shoulders weighing roughly double his full weight and proceeded to start squats. Sanji, not to be outdone, put his own bar across his shoulders and got a bit of extra weight on it. Enough to surpass what Zoro was doing. Then he started his own squats, making sure to keep the same pace as his ‘rival’.</p><p>“Less than that; please.” Usopp motioned to the two monsters as they continued to glare at each other. A bar that weighed a bit over half of Usopp’s full weight was put on the gunman’s shoulders and he proceeded to do his reps.</p><p>“It’s not so bad; you just have to work up to it.” Nami assured Mikita and Vivi. The orangette winked at Luffy as she put a bar over her shoulders; the weight being just over half her body weight. She dropped down into a perfect squat and grinned saucily at Luffy when she knew she had his eyes on her booty. She stood up and then back down in another perfect squat. Mikita and Vivi were a little red in the cheeks as they watched Nami purposefully tease Luffy.</p><p>Luffy shook his head before setting Vivi and Mikita up with their own weights. Neither of them was given a lot to start, about a quarter of their body weight. Both women breathed as they matched Nami’s form and pace. The navigator was more than happy to offer encouragement to her friends as they went through the workout.</p><p>After the squats, it was free training. Zoro immediately set up his personalized bar. It was much the same as a regular bar, but this one only allowed weight to be added from one end. Zoro stacked the plates on until the bar weighed more than he did, possibly triple the swordsman’s body weight! Then the green-haired man picked it up like it was a sword and set about doing his practice swings! Sanji had strapped a bar to his ankles after making it weigh as much as Zoro’s. The chef then laid back and proceeded to do leg lifts with the ridiculous amount of weight!</p><p>Usopp sat into meditation as he began to work on his Observation. Better to start it now than to wait for Luffy to start throwing in ‘surprises’ throughout the day. That was the usual routine for Observation Training now days. It was usually a punch, kick, or zap from Luffy’s Devil Fruit at random times during the day. Any that landed was a penalty for the next day’s training.</p><p>“Hey, Mikita, before we start the Haki training for you and Vivi, can you help me out?” Luffy questioned the platinum-blonde with a grin.</p><p>“Um, alright, what do you need?” Mikita questioned curiously.</p><p>“Well, the weights we have on board are a little light for me. Zoro and Sanji too, since they complain they can’t get enough of a workout with what we have.” Luffy began to explain, even as Vivi and Mikita both went blue in the face. “How heavy can your Devil Fruit make stuff?”</p><p>“I can go up to ten thousand kilograms.” Mikita informed her Captain. “I don’t think I can make other things heavier though.”</p><p>“Why not?” Luffy tilted his head to side. “Have you ever tried?”</p><p>“Actually, no…” Mikita blinked at the simple question. She’d mastered altering her own weight from one to ten thousand kilos. But she’d never really considered trying to impart her power onto other objects. Did her Fruit have that ability? She’d have to test it out.</p><p>“We can work on it.” Luffy grinned and Mikita found herself grinning back without a thought. “Will you be my weights for now?”</p><p>“What?” Mikita deadpanned at the odd request.</p><p>“You know, increase your weight while I lift you and stuff.” Luffy replied, grin still in place.</p><p>“That sounds really odd, you know that, right?” Mikita questioned him with a raised eyebrow.</p><p>“It does?” Luffy blinked at her.</p><p>“Kyahaha!” Mikita couldn’t help but laugh at the confused look on Luffy’s face. “Alright, I’ll help. How much weight do you want?”</p><p>“Max it out.” Luffy beamed at her. “I want to get a good workout in!”</p><p>“Okay, you asked for it, Captain!” Mikita smirked at him.</p><p>“Squats first then.” Luffy nodded as he squatted down in front of her, his back facing the green-eyed woman. “Hop on!”</p><p>“O-ok…” Mikita felt her cheeks burn as she realized Luffy wanted her to sit on his shoulders. She looked at Nami for her reaction and the orangette gave her a grin.</p><p>“Climb on, Mikita, don’t keep Luffy waiting.” Nami gave her a devilish grin and a flirty wink. Mikita felt her whole face turn red at the orangette’s words!</p><p>“Pardon me,” Mikita spoke as she placed one leg over Luffy’s right shoulder and then her other leg over his left shoulder. Luffy gently grasped her legs as he stood up. Mikita would have blushed if she weren’t already, as Luffy’s warm hands practically caressed her legs as he decided where to hold her. “Ready?”</p><p>“All set!” Luffy looked up at her, a smile on his face that eased her nerves and made her grin back at him.</p><p>“Ten Thousand Kilograms.” Mikita intoned and Luffy’s knees bent at the sudden weight. After a moment the Captain stood at full height, and then he squatted down. From there it was a steady rhythm as Luffy performed squats with ten metric tons on his shoulders! Mikita’s face stayed pink throughout the squats as she rode on his shoulders. After what had to be a hundred reps, minimum, Luffy decided he was done with squats.</p><p>“Bench press next!” Luffy declared as Mikita lessened her weight to her normal, unchanged, weight and climbed off his shoulders. Luffy quickly laid himself out on the deck and raised his arms up, perpendicular to his body.</p><p>“So, just… Lay down?” Mikita knew her face was red as she fidgeted slightly. Luffy nodded, a happy smile on his face at finally getting a decent work out in. “Alright…” Mikita sat on Luffy’s opened left palm, she suppressed an ‘eep’ as she felt his hand on her butt. With a deep breath she lay back until her upper back, between her shoulder blades, rested on Luffy’s right hand.</p><p>“Ready?” Luffy questioned her. Mikita took a deep breath to calm down before replying.</p><p>“I’m ready; ten thousand kilograms.” Mikita altered her weight to max and Luffy’s elbows bent to absorb the new weight. Staying still, her legs straight and her neck stiff, she let Luffy lift her up and down. After a few reps her neck was starting to hurt and her already sore legs were screaming at her.</p><p>“Luffy,” Nami called out to her lover. “Mikita is probably still a bit sore from training. It is her first day, after all.” Nami unfolded a lounge chair and showed it to the both of them. “Let her relax on this and just lift her and the chair at the same time.</p><p>“You’re a genius, Nami!” Luffy’s eyes sparkled, knowing he was going to be able to get more reps in now.</p><p>“Yes, yes, there’s no doubt about that.” Nami giggled as she helped Mikita off Luffy’s hands.</p><p>“Thank you, Nami, my neck and legs were starting to hurt.” Mikita smiled at the navigator.</p><p>“You’re welcome, Mikita.” Nami smiled as she gently hugged the woman. “I hope it wasn’t too <em>flustering</em> to have Luffy’s hands on you.” She teasingly whispered into the chocolatier’s ear.</p><p>“Nami!” Mikita let out a hushed shriek. Nami burst into giggles at the red-faced woman.</p><p>“Ready!” Luffy called out, now lying under the lounge chair and ready to lift.</p><p>“I’m coming.” Mikita replied as she walked over to the chair and laid on it. “Ah, much better.” She sighed happily. Luffy lifted her and the chair up fully before asking for weight. “Ten Thousand Kilograms.” Luffy’s arms once again bent to absorb the new weight. After a moment to get used to it, he lifted until his arms were extended again. Mikita actually giggled as she moved up and down, over and over while relaxing. Soaking up some sun while helping her Captain at the same time? That sounded like a win-win for her!</p><p>“Sanji~” Nami called out and the blonde chef was noodling his way over almost immediately.</p><p>“Yes Nami-swan~?” Sanji questioned the beautiful navigator.</p><p>“Let’s have some cool drinks for everyone. Then another good breakfast afterwards.” Nami smiled at him, while also praising his cooking skills. Sanji nearly felt his heart leap from his chest!</p><p>“Anything you say, Nami-sweet~!” Sanji twirled his way into the kitchen with heart-shaped eyes.</p><p>“Kyahaha! You play him like a fiddle!” Mikita laughed as she relaxed on the lounge chair.</p><p>“Sanji’s a chivalrous pervert, he’s weak to women.” Nami giggled, her hand raised and giving a ‘v for victory’ sign.</p><p>“He’s a wonderful chef though.” Vivi smiled brightly as she had finally got her breath back enough to walk over and join them. “He might even have Miss Terracotta, the Head Chef at the palace, beat!”</p><p>“Sanji’s food is the best!” Luffy agreed from below as he continued to bench press Mikita and the lounge chair.</p><p>“After breakfast, I’ll help you both work on your Haki.” Nami smiled at Vivi and Mikita. “Once we know whether you lean more towards Observation or Armament we’ll know what to focus on.”</p><p>“So we’ll learn the one we’re best at?” Vivi asked for confirmation.</p><p>“You’ll learn both,” Luffy spoke up as he continued to bench. “But we’ll know which to focus on first to get you used to using Haki.”</p><p>“Luffy is the only one that can teach you how to get a handle on your Conqueror’s, Vivi. You can’t learn that one, after all.” Nami playfully teased as she gently poked Vivi’s shoulder. The bluenette stifled a giggle of her own as her cheeks went slightly pink.</p><p>“Ladies, I have a cool, refreshing drink for each of you!” Sanji offered a tray of glasses to them. The glasses were filled with an orange-colored juice with ice. Mikan juice, from Nami’s trees, the sweetness would be much appreciated right now. Each of the girls took a glass happily and sipped from the fruit juice.</p><p>“Mmm, delicious!” Vivi smiled brightly as she drank.</p><p>“Never knew I was a fan of mikan juice! Kyahaha!” Mikita laughed as she sipped the sweet drink.</p><p>“Excellent as always, Sanji.” Nami praised and Sanji practically twirled into the air like a helicopter!</p><p>“Such wondrous praise!” Sanji called out, heart-eyes going full blast.</p><p>“Where’s ours?” Usopp called from where he was sitting as he worked on his Observation.</p><p>“I’ll get it in a minute!” Sanji barked back at the longnose.</p><p>Usopp suddenly jerked his head to the side, just as a brown blur passed where his face had just been. Sanji tilted his body, more fluidly than Usopp’s movement, as an identical blur shot passed him. Mikita and Vivi blinked at the sudden movements and looked at where the blurs had stopped. Lying on the deck in two different places were Luffy’s sandals.</p><p>“Oi, shitty Captain, don’t kick your dirty sandals at me!” Sanji yelled down at Luffy.</p><p>“Luffy! That almost hit me in the face!” Usopp pointed at the chuckling Lightning Man.</p><p>“Shishishishi! Good job you two!” Luffy chuckled after testing two of his nakama’s Observation.</p><p>“What just happened?” Mikita blinked at the interactions.</p><p>“Luffy was testing Sanji’s and Usopp’s Observation Haki.” Nami waved off. “Once you start getting good at it, you’ll be able to react to sudden surprise attacks like that.”</p><p>“That’s amazing.” Vivi’s eyes were wide at how easily the two had dodged the flying footwear that she could only see as a blur.</p><p>“Done!” Luffy lowered Mikita and the lounge chair to the deck after Mikita stopped altering her weight. The platinum-blonde smiled at Luffy as he climbed out from under the chair. Luffy thanked her for her help as he stood up.</p><p>“Oi, shitty love cook, we getting those drinks sometime today?” Zoro called out as he set his weights down and grabbed a towel.</p><p>“You can get your own, you damn moss-covered boulder!” Sanji shot back as he made his way towards the kitchen. “I have breakfast to make for the beautiful ladies of the ship!” With hearts in his eyes Sanji entered the kitchen to begin cooking.</p><p>“Well, while we wait for breakfast how about some showers?” Nami clapped her hands together and grinned at Mikita and Vivi.</p><p>“That sounds great.” Vivi nodded with a smile.</p><p>“I could definitely use a nice warm shower.” Mikita agreed as she got up from the lounge chair. The three women headed for the Women’s Quarters to grab clothes for the day. Then they took over the bathroom for a while as they washed themselves clean of all the sweat they’d worked up.</p><p>“Mikita!” Luffy called as the Kilo Kilo no Mi User walked back onto the deck. She was dressed in a pair of black pants and a white t-shirt. Looking at the smiling Luffy, she cracked a grin and wondered what he was calling her for.</p><p>“What’s up, Luffy?” Mikita asked as Luffy stopped in front of her.</p><p>“Want to work on your Devil Fruit with me?” Luffy questioned the chocolatier with a wide grin.</p><p>“I guess, though I don’t know if your idea will work or not.” Mikita shrugged as they headed to the middle of the deck, near the main mast.</p><p>“Well, then let’s put that off for a bit and focus on improving what you can already do!” Luffy suggested as they stood across from each other. “Can you iso…ice…isa…”</p><p>“Isolate?” Mikita guessed the word Luffy was going for.</p><p>“Yeah, isolate!” Luffy snapped as she provided the word he couldn’t remember. “Can you isolate which part of your body is affected by your power?”</p><p>“I always just changed my weight. I honestly didn’t look much beyond that.” Mikita admitted, looking a mixture of embarrassed and ashamed.</p><p>“Try.” Luffy gave her a gentle, encouraging smile. She couldn’t stop the small smile that formed on her face.</p><p>“Okay, let’s see…” Mikita focused as she felt the power of her Fruit. She willed it to activate and instantly felt her weight increase. “No, no, not the whole body,” She admonished herself as she returned her weight to normal.</p><p>“Maybe designate the part you want to change first?” Luffy suggested as he raised his hand. “That’s how I learned to change individual limbs. He demonstrated by making his hand become blue-white lightning that buzzed and crackled for a bit.</p><p>“So you are a Logia Fruit.” Mikita noted as she watched him return his arm to normal.</p><p>“Yep, the Goro Goro no Mi, I’m a Lightning Man.” Luffy grinned at the green-eyed woman.</p><p>“I got the lightning part back at Whiskey Peak.” Mikita giggled, remembering Luffy protecting her from the Kuro Kari member. “Alright, let’s try this again.” She imagined her right arm, then thought about increasing her weight like she usually did. She felt herself lean slightly at the sudden difference. “Hey! I did it!” She cheered as she lifted her heavier right arm. It was a little balance upsetting, but it proved that she could do it!</p><p>“Do you not feel your weight when you change it?” Luffy questioned as he felt her heavier right arm.</p><p>“Normally I don’t,” Mikita shook her head, barely managing to keep the color from her cheeks as Luffy gently held her arm. “Even this isn’t really feeling the weight, more so it’s just throwing off my balance a bit.”</p><p>“That’s neat!” Luffy declared as he let go of her right arm. “So your own weight doesn’t really affect you?”</p><p>“Nope!” Mikita smiled widely. “I can move completely normally even at max weight. I can’t jump very well, because my muscles can’t produce enough power to get me off the ground, but I can walk and run without limit. I’ve left impressions of my shoes in the ground on several islands by running at max weight before. It’s kinda weird that jumping is the only thing I can’t do, honestly. You’d figure that I wouldn’t be able to lift my legs to walk or run, but I can.”</p><p>“Devil Fruits are weird.” Luffy shrugged with a chuckle. “That’s what my teacher told us when my older brothers asked about them.”</p><p>“He’s not wrong! Kyahaha!” Mikita laughed before they resumed practicing with her partial weight ability.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Some nice interludes between plot points!</strong>
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  <strong>Next is Little Garden! Dorry and Broggy! The first time the Straw Hats ever meet giants! How powerful are Elbaf Giants that have lived for 150 years or more?</strong>
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  <strong>Will Mr. Three and Miss Goldenweek cause trouble? What about other surprise guests?</strong>
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  <strong>Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Little Garden</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! Little Garden! Time to meet some giants! There is also another pair of Officer Agents from Baroque Works too. In this version, another pair of guests head to the island that’s stuck in the prehistoric days too!</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 21 – Little Garden</strong>
</p><p>Luffy was practically bouncing from his special seat atop Merry’s figurehead. The Lightning Man could see the island on the horizon getting bigger and bigger. Their second island on the Grand Line was getting closer! He couldn’t wait to explore and see what it was like!</p><p>“Yep, that's definitely the island the Log Pose is pointing towards.” Nami confirmed as she lined up the needle of the Log Pose with her eye. “Does either of you two know anything about this island, Vivi, Mikita? What was it called?”</p><p>“It’s called Little Garden, Nami,” Vivi replied to the navigator, “I know it’s supposed to be a fairly dangerous island. According to stories, most crews that sail here don’t come back.”</p><p>“There are plenty of islands with stories like that in the Grand Line though,” Mikita shrugged at the ominous tales. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.”</p><p>“Then it's a mystery island!” Luffy’s grin only got bigger as they sailed closer, “I sense adventure!”</p><p>“Of course you’d say something like that.” Usopp sighed from up in the crow’s nest. Having a fearless Captain could fray the nerves of a normal man!</p><p>The Straw Hats sailed closer and closer, as details about the island of Little Garden became clearer. It seemed to be tropical, or perhaps sub-tropical in nature. So the island was probably a Summer Island considering this fact. The dense jungle came into clear view as they sailed the Merry into a large river that connected to the ocean.</p><p>“Why in the world would anyone name this place Little Garden?” Vivi pondered aloud while she blinked at the scenery, “Just look at this place. It's a giant overgrown jungle! There's nothing ‘little’ about it!” As they sailed further inland the crew could hear the sounds of the animals that made the jungle their home. Another point against calling this island Little Garden came in the fact that most of the trees grew higher than the Going Merry’s main mast!</p><p>“You're right, everything here seems to be gigantic! I’m having trouble identifying any of the plants and trees either.” Nami noted as her eyes looked over a strangely short tree with what appeared to be palm leaves on it. Well, if palm leaves had large spikes along their edges at any rate!</p><p>“We'll have to stock up on provisions before we leave.” Sanji mentioned, taking a drag of his cigarette, “We have more crew members now, Luffy’s bottomless pit of a stomach isn’t going anywhere, and we didn’t get a chance to restock at Whiskey Peak.”</p><p>A loud shriek tore through the air. None of them had ever heard anything like it before. Mikita and Vivi cringed at the sound while Usopp looked around wearily from his post in the crow’s nest.</p><p> “What the hell was that?!” Nami demanded as she tried to see through the dense canopy.</p><p>“A bird?” Sanji guessed, even though he’d never heard such a shriek in his life.</p><p>“Hey guys, look at those weird lizards,” Luffy pointed to the creatures climbing up some trees near the edge of the river, “They have feathers! That’s so weird!”</p><p>A loud rumble was heard, as if the island was shaking slightly, before a blast went off that made most of the crew flinch at the unexpected noise.</p><p>“Was that a volcano? What kind of island is this?” Mikita demanded, already looking around to see if debris from an eruption was going to start raining down on their heads.</p><p>“It's an island untouched by time…” Nami mumbled out, just loud enough for the crew to hear her, “This is a literal prehistoric island.”</p><p>“Prehistoric?” Usopp frowned as he mulled over the word, then his eyes bugged out as he shouted down to the navigator, “You mean like dinosaurs?!” Usopp pulled his rifle and held it at the ready. The gunman wasn’t taking any chances with dinosaurs!</p><p>“Sanji! I need a Pirate Lunchbox!" Luffy called out, the Lightning Man was practically vibrating as he looked over the jungle. “Adventure, adventure, adventure!” He sang, off-key, as he bounced on his special seat.</p><p>“Right, right, calm down,” Sanji exhaled the smoke from his cigarette before he walked into the kitchen.</p><p>“Luffy! Are you sure about this?!” Usopp called out to his Captain, “Look at that giant tiger!” The gunman gestured to the large beast. The tiger then collapsed, dead, revealing a large portion of its back missing. It was as if something even more massive had taken a bite out of it! “What the hell can do that to a tiger that big?!”</p><p>“Huh, the ones back home were that size, or bigger.” Luffy shrugged without a care.</p><p>‘<em>Right… Luffy is from Dawn Island.</em>’ Usopp exhaled heavily, the gunman already knew there was no talking his Captain out of his plans for ‘adventure’ now.</p><p>“Anybody else want to come?” Luffy looked around at his nakama with a wide grin.</p><p>“Why not?” Nami smiled back at her lover, “Not like there's anything on this island that can threaten you.”</p><p>“I think I'll come too. Carue can keep us safe.” Vivi smiled as she hopped onto Carue, who suddenly started trembling. “If I just sit around I'll probably do nothing but worry. This will hopefully keep my mind off of my troubles until the Log Pose resets.”</p><p>“I’ll help watch the ship.” Mikita volunteered, even as she pulled out a lounge chair and sat down.</p><p>“Well, I'm not going to lay here and wait.” Zoro stretched and a satisfying ‘pop’ was heard. With a yawn he followed Luffy, Nami, and Vivi off the ship. “I'm going to take a walk.”</p><p>“Wait a minute Zoro!” Sanji yelled out, making the swordsman stop. “We need to try and replenish our food stores. If you see anything out there that’s edible, bring it back here.”</p><p>“Yeah sure,” Zoro gave a careless wave over his shoulder. “I'll hunt a beast that you could never take down.”</p><p>“Wait a damn minute!” Sanji's foot stomped onto the Going Merry's railing. “Those’re fighting words. You really think you can hunt a bigger beast than I can?”</p><p>“Of course I can.” Zoro stood there with a smirk on his face.</p><p>“It’s a challenge then!” Sanji snarled, a vein throbbing on his forehead. “Let's see who can hunt the biggest and best tasting beast on the island.”</p><p>“It looks like it’s just the two of us then.” Mikita giggled as she relaxed on the lounge chair. Usopp sighed and nodded in agreement as he kept an eye out from the crow’s nest.</p><p>-With Luffy, Nami, Vivi, and Carue-</p><p>“Wow, this squid has a shell on it!” Luffy picked the aquatic creature out of the river they were walking along. His eyes roamed over the odd, prehistoric creature.</p><p>“That’s called an ammonite, right?” Vivi was also inspecting the, supposedly extinct, animal.</p><p>“Yeah, but ammonites died out a long time ago though.” Nami mentioned as they looked at the flailing tentacles and the hard shell. Sensing the distress of the creature Luffy placed it back into the river and let it swim away. With a grin Luffy turned his head to the much larger ‘Voice’ he felt moving slowly towards them. Suddenly, Carue began frantically quacking drawing Nami and Vivi’s attention. “That's a dinosaur.” Nami blinked her voice flat as she craned her neck to see the head at the top of the long neck.</p><p>“Is it even possible for an island so untouched by time to exist?! Even on the Grand Line, that's not possible, right?” Vivi shook her head, her eyes wide. “I know some islands have advanced technology, while others are still in the tribal ages… but these creatures died out millions of years ago!”</p><p>“And he's climbing it.” Nami giggled while shaking her head at Luffy’s antics. Vivi stared up at him stunned, unable to formulate words at the pirate’s actions. “How's the view up there, Luffy?” The orangette laughed as she called out to her lover.</p><p>“This island is so awesome!” Luffy shouted down from his perch atop the sauropod’s head. “There are huge caves and I can see the volcanoes!”</p><p>“Be careful Luffy! That <strong>is</strong> a dinosaur! Who knows how it’ll react?” Vivi yelled up to him.</p><p>“Let him get it out of his system. Once he gets bored up there we’ll continue looking around.” Nami grinned, watching Luffy look this way and that while sitting on top of the dinosaur’s head.</p><p>“Hmm?” Luffy perked up and disappeared in a spark from the top of the sauropod’s head. He reappeared near instantly standing in front of Nami and Vivi. Nami picked up on the fact that Luffy was putting himself between her, Vivi, and whatever had caused him to react like this. Her shock staff was fluidly assembled in record time.</p><p>In a flash of steel the great dinosaur’s head was cleaved off its neck in a single swing. Vivi’s eyes bugged out and her jaw dropped. Carue was frozen in place, still as a statue from terror. Nami’s eyes widened as she looked up at the one that had slain the sauropod.</p><p>“Gegyagyagyagya! Got a good one today!” The giant laughed as he rested his sword over his shoulder. He had a long, dark beard that reached his navel. He wore a war helmet, brown pants and leather boots with an armored belly warmer. He had a dark-purple cape on, which Luffy thought was cool. The sword resting on his shoulder was a massive longsword with a straight blade that completely dwarfed the Going Merry.</p><p>“You're huge!” Luffy laughed loudly as he looked up at the giant. “Are you human?! Do you want to join my crew?!”</p><p>Nami and Vivi both face-palmed in unison without even realizing it. Vivi turned to Carue, only to find that her duck had collapsed and was foaming at the mouth in sheer terror. Vivi was quickly at his side and trying to wake him back up.</p><p>“Gegyagyagyagya! I'm the giant, Dorry! I’m the greatest warrior to ever come from Elbaf!” The giant laughed loudly as he responded to the human. “You're all invited to my home! I haven't had a guest in ages! Let's have a feast, shall we?!”</p><p>-The Going Merry-</p><p>“So… have you got any sake? What about rum? Maybe some grog? Can you hear me, little guys?” The large, bearded giant questioned the stunned Usopp and Mikita.</p><p>“Well, you’re the Grand Line veteran here, what should we do?” Usopp whispered to Mikita, never taking his eyes off the giant.</p><p>“Yes, we do! We have a few barrels left!” Mikita forced a bright smile at the giant.</p><p>“That’s it?! That’s your plan?!” Usopp questioned her, still not breaking his gaze from the giant.</p><p>“Are <em>you</em> going to tell him ‘no’, Usopp?” Mikita shot back, glaring at Usopp out of the corner of her eye.</p><p>“Gabababababa! You little humans are funny!” The rotund giant laughed. He had a wide, blonde beard that fanned out from his chin and was dressed in a dark-red shirt, with white ruffs of fur on the top and bottom hem. He had various leather armor pieces covering him, his legs were covered by burnt orange pants with vertical black stripes, and he even had a navy-blue cape. He wore a red, horned helmet on his head and a wide grin on his lips. “GababaARGH!”</p><p>Usopp and Mikita nearly screamed in terror when the giant suddenly yelled loudly. They both glanced behind the giant and saw a large Tyrannosaurus biting the giant's rump! The giant turned his head, his eyes shadowed by his helmet. The carnivorous dinosaur suddenly seemed to realize the danger it was in. But it was already too late. In a movement they almost couldn't follow, the giant whipped around, and his massive axe cleaved the Tyrannosaurus’ head off in a flash.</p><p>“Aaaaahhhhh!” Mikita and Usopp couldn’t hold back their screams of fear this time!</p><p>“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” The giant raised his axe in triumph of his kill. “Behold little humans, I am the mightiest warrior to come from Elbaf! Broggy!” Broggy’s voice was like thunder, reverberating through the jungle. He hefted the Tyrannosaur’s decapitated head in his left hand. “We have plenty of meat and you guys have booze!” Broggy grinned widely at the two of them. “Let's have ourselves a feast! Gabababababa!”</p><p>-Broggy’s Cave-</p><p>“And, we’re finished!” Broggy grinned at the cooked dinosaur meat. “Help yourselves, guys!” The blonde giant hefted one of the massive legs and bit right into it.</p><p>“…I'm not hungry.” Usopp lied, fairly certain that the giant was just trying to fatten them up after seeing the skulls and other human bones lying around the place.</p><p>“Don't waste food. Sanji would kick your ass. Hell, I’ll kick your ass.” Mikita threatened the gunman. While she specialized in sweets, she was also a competent cook and abhorred wasting food. With a deep breath to steady herself she deftly cut a good-sized piece of the dinosaur meat off the large slab Broggy had cooked. The giant had even salted it, so it was at least more than just cooked meat. She placed it on a large leaf she’d pulled off a short tree and prepared herself for her first taste of dinosaur meat.</p><p>“Alright, alright, I get it. You sea cooks are all the same.” Usopp mumbled, as he cut himself off a piece of meat and placed it on his own large, thick leaf. '<em>Please don't eat humans…’</em> Usopp pleaded in his mind.</p><p>“This is great!” They exclaimed in unison after their first bites.</p><p>“Luffy would love this!” Usopp stated as he took another bite.</p><p>“It’s very tender! Who would have thought dinosaur would be anything but tough?” Mikita smiled as she cut her piece into smaller bite-sized bits so she could eat easier. “Is this sea salt you used?”</p><p>“Gabababababa!” Broggy laughed, slapping his knee. “Yeah, this meat is second only to Sea King! A pinch of sea salt really brings out the flavor! I hewed out some bowls from the mountains and used them to boil seawater and gather salt. There was a reason my friend and I chose this island.”</p><p>“Luffy mentioned eating Sea King once. He said his grandpa caught it on the way to their home island. Is Sea King really that delicious?” Usopp questioned the giant as he ate. He was slowly becoming more comfortable despite his earlier fear.</p><p>“Aye, it’s some good eating.” Broggy gained a fond smile, seemingly reminiscing. “Oh I’d love to fish one of them up. It's been so long…” He had a wistful look for a brief moment. “Sea King practically melts in your mouth even when lightly prepared. It can make a great meal just by cooking it over an open flame with a little salt. Unfortunately,” Broggy glared over towards the sea on one side of the island. “With that damn fish swimming around this island, none of the Sea Kings will come close.”</p><p>“You mentioned a friend? Is there another giant from Elbaf here with you?” Mikita asked after she swallowed her food. “How long have you been here?”</p><p>“That's right!” Broggy grinned as he turned to face them. “As for how long we've been here…” He paused for a moment, seemingly counting in his head. Usopp and Mikita leaned forward their curiosity peaked, as it took Broggy a moment. “It's been one hundred years.”</p><p>-Dorry’s Cave-</p><p>“It's so good!” Luffy exclaimed as he devoured a large chunk of the sauropod meat that Dorry had cooked up. Even Nami and Vivi were happily eating the dinosaur meat that they’d place on large leaves as makeshift plates. For his part, Luffy was literally climbing on a large piece of the dinosaur meat and tearing chunks off to eat. He’d made an impressive dent in the large piece already!</p><p>“We've got to stock the Merry with as much dinosaur meat as possible!” Luffy declared, with a bright smile on his face. “Hey, Dorry, do you guys have one of those Eternal Poses to Little Garden? I’d love to come back and eat more dinosaur meat whenever we get the chance!” Nami and Vivi both giggled at the totally ‘Luffy’ statement.</p><p>“I'm afraid not, little guy.” Dorry laughed loudly. “Most people seem to try and avoid this island at all costs!” He held up his massive hand. “This Pirate Lunchbox of yours was pretty damn good too. We don’t have much in the way of seasonings on this island. The flavors were great after so long!”</p><p>“Of course, it is!” Luffy laughed along with Dorry. “My chef made that lunch. If you said it was bad, I would’ve had to kick your ass. Shishishi!”</p><p>“Kick my ass, you say?” Nami and Vivi visibly flinched at the giant's suddenly dark tone. Then he immediately wiped the trepidation away by laughing loudly. “You’re a funny human! Gegyagyagyagya!”</p><p>“They're like old friends already.” Vivi shook her head and smiled at the pair. “Luffy could make friends with almost anyone, huh?”</p><p>“That’s Luffy for you.” Nami giggled, before pulling the bluenette into a side-hug. “Give him some time and I’m sure he can be <em>more than friends</em> with just about any woman too~” Nami teased the princess with a Cheshire grin.</p><p>“N-Nami!” Vivi yelped in shock, a blush filling her cheeks as Nami giggled at her.</p><p>“Say, Dorry, how long does it take the Log Pose to record this island anyway?” Nami questioned as she took a moment to stop teasing Vivi.</p><p>“Just a year.” Dorry shrugged as he took a large bite of meat. All three humans immediately felt a weight fall on their shoulders.</p><p>“A year!” Luffy exclaimed in shock. “We can’t stay here for a year! We have stuff to do!”</p><p>“You can try looking for an unbroken Log Pose and see if one of them has reset. We haven’t had any visitors on this island in over a year, so if you can find an unbroken Pose, then you should be fine.” Dorry offered as he ate.</p><p>“What happens when you do get visitors?” Vivi inquired as she’d noticed the human bones scattered here and there across the island.</p><p>“Most of them die.” Dorry admitted, taking a large drink of water from a stone bowl. “Some die from the weather, others from the forest and animals, and some…” He looked down at the three of them with a serious gaze. “Some die because they attack <strong>us</strong>.” Nami and Vivi held each other as they shivered in fear. Luffy was still stuffing his face and didn’t seem to see a problem with Dorry’s statement.</p><p>“Hey Dorry, why aren't you and your friend in this Elbaf place?” Luffy asked as he finished off another portion of meat.</p><p>“Ah, home. It's been so long.” Dorry chuckled, a wide grin on his face. “I wonder if any of them still remember us.” Dorry, seeing he had the humans’ attention, continued. “Elbaf is deep in the Grand Line… beyond the Red Line in fact.” He leaned forward a bit as he spoke. “You see, on Elbaf there is a certain custom that must be followed. When there is a dispute between two giants and neither side will give any ground, we leave it to our God to decide who is right. The two will engage in combat until one side is declared the victor!”</p><p>“But we've already been at this for a hundred years! And nothing has been settled!” Dorry cracked up, laughing loudly at the length of time they’d been at it.</p><p>“A HUNDRED YEARS?!” Vivi blurted out in shock. “But why?!”</p><p>“Gegyagyagyagya! A hundred years is nothing to us.” Dorry waved off her incredulous look. “Our lifespans are three times longer than a puny human’s.”</p><p>“But what's the point after all this time?! Do you two really want to kill each other that much?!” Vivi couldn’t help but ask the giant. The very idea of fighting someone that long was impossible for the gentle princess to understand. “What was the dispute even about? What kind of argument breeds such hatred that it keeps you hacking away at each other for an entire century?!”</p><p>“Hatred?” Dorry blinked at her in confusion. “I don't hate him at all. He's my oldest friend.” Vivi could only slump to her knees, completely stunned at such a revelation. Nami placed a hand on Vivi’s shoulder as she knelt beside the bluenette.</p><p>“I don't really get it myself, Vivi.” Nami shook her head. “I think it’s more a ‘man’ thing.” She smiled at the princess while motioning in Luffy and Dorry's direction. “But this is what makes those guys who they are.”</p><p>“Damn right.” Luffy nodded with a grin matching Dorry's on his face. “This battle isn’t about hate or anything stupid like that. It's about honor.”</p><p>“You get it, little guy!” Dorry laughed, before looking over as the center volcano on the island erupted. “Well, that's my cue. I guess I’d better get going.” Luffy grabbed the two girls, each of them now sitting on one of his arms. He leapt up into the trees, following Dorry as he picked up his sword and slung it over his shoulder before walking off. “Miss Vivi,” Dorry turned to look at the princess. “The reason for our dispute… IS LONG FORGOTTEN!” The equally huge shadow of Broggy appeared through the forest on the opposite side of a massive clearing. The two giants met with a clash that caused a massive wave of displaced air!</p><p>“Don't you long for home, Dorry?!” Broggy roared as he deflected a slash with his shield and then kicked his friend in the chest. The size and power of the two giants shook the ground. Luffy immediately picked up on the Haki behind their blows.</p><p>“All the more reason to defeat you, my friend!” Dorry merely took a single step back from the kick to the chest. He parried Broggy’s axe with his own shield and spun, looking to take Broggy’s head off with his longsword.</p><p>Broggy ducked under the slash and jumped back. Dorry had just found his footing when Broggy leapt into the air with his axe raised over his head. Dorry was the one to leap back as Broggy slammed his axe into the dirt, a massive scar opening up in the very earth, while a large plume of dirt was thrown into the air. Dorry jabbed his sword forward, Broggy pivoted out of the line of the thrust. The force of the attack kept travelling however and parted a large section of the forest.</p><p>Broggy swiped at his friend with a one-armed swing of his axe. A massive clanging rang through the air as Dorry deflected the blow with his helmet. Luffy’s eyes briefly spotting the top of the helmet turning black for an instant to deflect the blow. He supposed it made sense for two warriors as old as these to have mastered Haki to this level.</p><p>“This is amazing! The smallest blunder could mean instant death!” Usopp, still at Broggy’s home, was staring at the fight. His entire body was trembling. Terror, amazement, worry, awe, pride, so many emotions flooding his system as he watched on.</p><p>Mikita stared at the battle as well. Each clash sending a gale of displaced air at the platinum-blonde. This was insane! How could two people, even if they were giants, cause so much damage in a one-on-one battle? Is this what the other half of the Grand Line was like? She wouldn’t be able to do <strong>anything</strong> to someone as strong as this! She’d been fairly confident in her power for years; when she was made an Officer Agent in Baroque Works she’d felt very confident in her strength. Her encounter with her new Captain and now seeing this battle between the giants, it really drove home how small her strength was.</p><p>“This… this is the greatest fight I've ever seen.” Usopp breathed out. Not even any of the crazy shit he’d seen Luffy do could match this! Luffy had so outmatched even the toughest of his prior opponents that their ‘battles’ were one-sided beatings. An evenly matched fight like this… this was a battle. This is what he wanted to become!</p><p>“This fight is crazy. They've been going at each other like this for a hundred years? How have they kept going for so long?” Mikita wondered aloud, her eyes still locked on the fight.</p><p>“That doesn't matter to them!” Usopp shook his head, his eyes never straying from the battle. “This is a true battle between men! They’ve each raised a flag in their hearts! Defeat means their flag falls! Neither of them will ever let that happen! They’ll protect it forever! That flag means more to them than their very lives!”</p><p>Mikita couldn’t say that Usopp was wrong; even if she didn’t understand the point of fighting over and over again, day after day, for a century. This battle meant more to Broggy and Dorry than their lives. She could understand that much. There weren’t many warriors who’d choose death before the loss of their honor these days. She could understand why this fight was so inspiring to Usopp.</p><p>"This is it… this is what I always dreamed of being! A proud warrior! A man that holds his honor close and never lets it go!" Usopp declared with passion. The young gunman had never been more inspired in his life!</p><p>“So you want to be a giant?” Mikita teased with a knowing smirk.</p><p>“DID YOU EVEN LISTEN TO ANYTHING I JUST SAID?!” Usopp snapped at her, shark-like teeth seemingly appearing in his mouth.</p><p>“Kyahaha!” Mikita laughed loudly at his response. But when Usopp declared his desire to see Elbaf a moment later, she couldn’t help but grin. ‘<em>I think he just found where his Dream lies. Good for you, Usopp.</em>’</p><p>The titanic battle was winding down as both Dorry and Broggy lost their weapons. The final clash ended with each of them slamming their bucklers into the other's face! “73,466 battles…” They both collapsed to the ground, which shook slightly from the impact. “73,466 draws.”</p><p>“Shishishi! That was so awesome!” Luffy cheered loudly. He landed with Nami and Vivi in his arms beside Usopp and Mikita. The platinum-blonde saw the redness on Vivi’s cheeks and smirked slightly. There was teasing to be done! “You guys are strong! Can I spar with you too?”</p><p>“Luffy, no...” Nami pinched the bridge of her nose. Vivi just stared at him, deadpan.</p><p>“Oh, you must be little Usopp’s Captain.” Broggy grinned at Luffy as the two giants sat up. “You want to spar eh?”</p><p>“Don’t you two ever take a break?” Vivi questioned the two warriors. “After a hundred years of fighting each other, are you sure you’ll be able to break the stalemate?”</p><p>“Ugh, another hundred years on this rock?” Dorry shook his head with a mirthless chuckle. “Wouldn't that be awful? I've wanted some Sea King for decades, though. Of course with the damn Island Eater swimming around, the Sea Kings won’t come close.” He grumbled, glaring off towards the opposite side of the island.</p><p>“I don’t recall us ever taking a break since we decided that the center volcano would be our signal.” Broggy admitted with a thoughtful look on his face as he ran his fingers through his beard.</p><p>“Broggy has the better memory between us,” Dorry chortled lightly. “If he says we haven’t then we probably haven’t. But seeing as even he can't remember what our initial fight was about, maybe his memory isn’t so great? Gegyagyagyagya!”</p><p>“Ooh! Why don't we have a giant party then? I'll go gather the rest of the crew!” Luffy suggested with a gleam in his eyes as he thought about eating even <strong>more</strong> dinosaur meat!</p><p>“We have to find both Sanji and Zoro, right?" Vivi asked Luffy. “They were having a hunting contest, remember?”</p><p>“Hunting contest…” Dorry and Broggy both cocked their heads to the side slightly. They looked at one another, before grinning widely, slight chuckles beginning to bubble up from their massive frames.</p><p>“Observation~” Luffy chuckled as he tapped his right temple. Vivi’s eyes widened at the reminder of just how far away Luffy could sense other people. He’d demonstrated that before when he sensed that Igaram was alive. “I’ll check the whole island all at once!”</p><p>“That battle was amazing, Master Broggy!” Usopp congratulated the blonde giant. “You were awesome too, Master Dorry!” He bowed slightly to the long-bearded giant.</p><p>“Master?” Nami raised one of her delicate eyebrows at the gunman’s wording.</p><p>“Kyahaha, these two inspired him with their battle. He says he wants to go to Elbaf now.” Mikita informed them all.</p><p>“That sounds like an adventure to me! Put it on the list, Nami!” Luffy grinned widely, bouncing in place in his excitement.</p><p>“Noted.” Nami giggled at her lover.</p><p>“Anyway, Mr. Dorry, Mr. Broggy… would you two be willing to have a truce for the party?” Vivi smiled up at the two chuckling giants.</p><p>“Of course!” Dorry grinned, before his chuckles became full-blown laughter. “Thanks to you little guys we actually remembered what our fight was about!”</p><p>“Gabababababa!” Broggy burst into matching laughter. “It was a hunting contest, much like the one your two crewmates are apparently having!” All three women of the crew face-palmed at this revelation. Broggy chuckled and pointed behind him at the massive caves the giants called their homes. “Those are their skulls!”</p><p>“EHHHHHHHHHH?!” Everyone gaped at the massive skulls that they’d believed to be mountains and cliffs!</p><p>“What kind of Sea Kings did you drag in?!” Nami demanded, her mind barely able to wrap around the sheer enormity of the two giants’ century-old catches!</p><p>“You guys are awesome! Are you sure you don't want to join my crew?" Luffy asked both of the giants with his hand raised above his head.</p><p>“They wouldn't even fit on the ship!” Nami, Vivi, and Mikita yelled at him with shark teeth on full display. The two giants could only laugh in response to the small human!</p><p>-A Ship Approaching Little Garden from the East-</p><p>“Ugh, I can’t believe this.” A black-haired man wearing a blue and white, vertical-striped shirt and white trousers complained to his silent partner. “No one has heard from the Unluckies in almost a week and now we have to rely on the back up mail system. Now the boss wants us to check out everyone that could potentially kill the Unluckies and find out what’s going on. This is a waste of my talents.”</p><p>“…” His partner didn’t respond to his complaints. She simply sat on the deck of their small ship and painted.  She was a teenager with a more childish appearance, with relatively large eyes and circles of blush on her cheeks. She was also fairly short in stature and wore her dark red hair tied in twin braids. Her outfit was a wide-brimmed pink hat with a green band, a dark blue T-shirt with the word ‘GOLDEN’ written on it in pink, a sky blue cloud-patterned button-down shirt, a maroon-colored overalls skirt with the top folded down, blue striped stockings, and big red shoes with white cuffs and white soles. This was Miss Goldenweek, partner to Mr. Three.</p><p>“We were supposed to meet up with Mr. Five and Miss Valentine after they finished eliminating the traitors. But Little Garden is the only island a Log Pose points to from Cactus Island. We’ll do a quick check before moving on to the surrounding islands. We have the Eternal Poses for most of them, right?” Mr. Three questioned.</p><p>“Yes.” Miss Goldenweek nodded as she continued to paint.</p><p>“Good, let’s get this over with.” Mr. Three huffed as they sailed towards the island on the horizon.</p><p>-On a Ship Following Mr. Three’s-</p><p>“They’re heading for Little Garden.” A woman confirmed as they followed the ship of the man currently going by the alias of Mr. Three. But his actual name was Galdino, also known as ‘Loan Shark’, with a Twenty-Four Million Beri Bounty on his head.</p><p>“Not a place most people would go.” A man replied as he watched the dot that was the ship on the horizon. “Regardless, we just need to catch up with them.” A small smile made its way onto the man’s face.</p><p>“You’re smiling,” The woman noted with a grin of her own. “Are you happy to finally get this mission accomplished?”</p><p>“That, and for some reason I’m feeling kind of nostalgic.” The man replied as they sailed after the ship they were chasing.</p><p>“Any reason why?” The woman questioned curiously.</p><p>“Nope, but somethings telling me it’ll be fun!” The man grinned widely as he adjusted his black top hat.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Dorry! Broggy! Battles of honor! Usopp inspired! What an island Little Garden is!</strong>
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  <strong>But now some unwelcome guests are approaching! What will the Straw Hats do against Mr. Three and Miss Goldenweek?</strong>
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  <strong>Also…someone else is following Mr. Three! Someone that just so happens to wear a black top hat! Just <em>who</em> could this person be? <em>Cackles</em></strong>
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  <strong>Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Wax and Ash</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! The arrival of Mr. Three and Miss Goldenweek! How will the Baroque Agents fair against the Straw Hats, Dorry, and Broggy? What about the one’s that’re following Mr. Three?</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 22 – Wax and Ash</strong>
</p><p>Luffy had no trouble locating and collecting Sanji and Zoro. Neither of the men appreciated Luffy appearing in a bright spark, grabbing them, and then vanishing back to where he’d been, however. After some grumbling at their Captain, both Swordsman and Chef had met Dorry and Broggy. Both men could, without shame, admit to being stunned for a few moments at seeing the gargantuan warriors. Considering both Dorry and Broggy stood at roughly twenty-two meters in height, it was expected to be a little stunned when meeting them for the first time.</p><p>As there was still meat from the dinosaurs that Dorry and Broggy had killed, all that was left was to gather some of the native fruit on the island to give some variety to their impromptu party. Nami, Vivi, and Mikita had volunteered to take on the task. Sanji had dashed back to the Going Merry to get his herbs and spices and make a ‘proper meal’ for the two giants. The Chef couldn’t help but feel some camaraderie with the two giants; being stuck on an island with limited food and having to do what they could. With the two giants help, a large rack of sauropod ribs was slowly roasting over a massive, by human standards, fire while Sanji’s seasoning rub began to emit a wonderful aroma throughout the area. Luffy, to absolutely no one’s surprise, was already drooling.</p><p>“Going to be a hell of a meal, eh Dorry?” Broggy chuckled while eyeing the ribs appreciatively.</p><p>“Aye, Broggy, we even have booze to go with it!” Dorry grinned at the barrels that the Straw Hats had brought out from the Going Merry’s holds. To the giants each barrel was more like a single glass, but that was more than they’d had in the last year or two. They’d happily savor it with the amazing meat the little chef was cooking.</p><p>“Banquet, banquet, banquet~” Luffy was swaying back and forth, smiling widely and his excitement almost tangible.</p><p>“We’re back!” Nami called out as the girls returned with quite the haul of various fruits from the jungle. There was enough that even Dorry and Broggy could enjoy a handful each and still have some left over.</p><p>Just after the two racks of dinosaur ribs were pulled off the fire; Broggy, Dorry, and Luffy all perked up slightly. The three, in unison, turned to look in a specific direction. This got the rest of the crew’s attention and they all gave inquisitive looks towards their Captain.</p><p>“Observation.” Luffy stated without turning to look at his crewmates. Nami was the first to understand and centered herself, spreading out her awareness as far as she could. Usopp, Zoro, and Sanji followed her example but it seemed none of them could pinpoint what had caught Luffy and the giants’ attention.</p><p>“More visitors?” Dorry cocked his head to the side in confusion.</p><p>“So soon?” Broggy remarked since he was equally as confused.</p><p>“They’re getting closer,” Luffy commented as the two ‘Voices’ slowly approached the area. The rest of the crew continued to try and sense the approaching people, but without much luck. They were clearly trying to hide, for those that hadn’t gotten to a more advanced level of Observation; that made it harder to pinpoint them.</p><p>“We know you’re there, come out little humans!” Dorry bellowed making everyone, bar Luffy, jump at the sudden loud noise. When no one emerged from the jungle after a few moments, Broggy snorted.</p><p>“One warning,” Broggy huffed as he reached over and picked up a boulder like it was a baseball. With a half-hearted toss the boulder went sailing <strong>through</strong> the jungle! Trees, animals, other rocks, and anything else that got in the boulder’s path were smashed until it hit the ground and rolled for a few dozen meters. The massive rock came to a stop almost six hundred meters away! “Now come out!” The blonde giant bellowed as well.</p><p>“Wait! Wait! Okay! We’re coming out!” A man called out as he and a young looking girl emerged from the jungle. Everyone there quickly realized that the man’s black hair was styled to look like the number ‘3’.</p><p>“Mr. Three!” Mikita pointed at the man almost as soon as he emerged. “Miss Goldenweek too!”</p><p>“Baroque Works!” Vivi exclaimed a she reached for her Peacock Slashers. Nami fluidly assembled her shock staff. Zoro drew his swords, Sanji took his preferred stance, and Usopp had two of his pistols out in a flash, one trained on the Mr. Three and the other on Miss Goldenweek.</p><p>“Miss Valentine?” Mr. Three looked confused as to what a fellow Officer Agent was doing with two giants and a group of pirates. “Where is Mr. Five? Why are you with these pirates?”</p><p>“Mr. Five is dead, killed by a Kuro Kari member after he decided that I would be ‘acceptable losses’ apparently. I’m out, I quit Baroque Works. I’m a member of the Straw Hat Pirates now.” Mikita informed the pair of Officer Agents.</p><p>“An enemy of yours?” Dorry questioned Luffy as he reached for his massive sword.</p><p>“Something like that.” Luffy remarked as he stared down the man.</p><p>“Well now, that’s not good,” Mr. Three put up a brave front but a bead of sweat rolled down the side of his head at having so many weapons bared against him. Could he use his Candle Lock on all of them before the gunman could fire? “You know that there’s only one way to leave the organization…” He trailed off, looking at Mikita.</p><p>“Try me.” Mikita glared back as she stepped forward. She had been practicing with Luffy everyday on their voyage to Little Garden. She’d made some good progress with her Devil Fruit and she wouldn’t mind testing it out.</p><p>“If you’re an enemy of our new friends, leave or die, you’re interrupting our banquet.” Broggy rumbled as he and Dorry both glared down at Mr. Three and Miss Goldenweek.</p><p>“Hey now, there’s no need for violence just yet.” A new voice called out and even Luffy flinched. He hadn’t picked up on these ‘Voices’ until the man spoke!</p><p>Walking out of a different part of the jungle was a man and a woman. The man was blonde and wore a long black jacket with a buckle on the left sleeve, a blue shirt and vest, a frilled cravat, and a simple belt holding a pair of loose light-blue pants with black boots. On his hands were a pair of brown gloves and on his head he wore a black top hat with goggles over the band. A grin was on his face as he looked at everyone. The woman was slightly short, but also slim, curvaceous, and had a pronounced hourglass figure. She had orange hair, a shade or two lighter than Nami’s. She was wearing a crimson newsboy cap with gold goggles, a pink shirt with a frilly collar, a maroon short skirt, and black thigh-high stockings with brown high heeled boots.</p><p>“It’s been a while, Luffy.” The man greeted the Straw Hat Captain with a grin. “You’re not giving your crew a hard time, are you?”</p><p>“Sabo?!” Luffy exclaimed in shock at seeing his older brother for the first time in just over three years.</p><p>“Your brother?!” Nami blinked as she looked at Sabo again. Luffy had told her about his brothers during some of their time together. The two lovers sharing their past with each other was just another part of their relationship. Unconsciously, Nami quickly checked herself over. She wanted to make a good first impression on Luffy’s family after all!</p><p>“Luffy’s brother?!” Zoro, Usopp, and Sanji all exclaimed at seeing the tall, grinning man. There was some slight resemblance…aside from the obvious hair color difference.</p><p>“I didn’t know he had a brother…” Mikita blinked. She was new to the crew though. Vivi was just as shocked to meet Luffy’s elder brother on this remote and dangerous island of all places.</p><p>“They seem shocked.” The woman next to Sabo giggled at the crew’s reaction.</p><p>“Luffy probably doesn’t talk about himself much, Koala.” Sabo shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.</p><p>“Sabo!” Luffy was by his blonde brother’s side and throwing an arm across his shoulders in a spark. “What’re you doing here? It’s great to see you again!”</p><p>“Good to see you too, Luffy.” Sabo chuckled along with his little brother.</p><p>It happened in a blink.</p><p>Mr. Three waved his arms, a white substance pouring from the limbs. A call of ‘Candle Blade’ and swords formed from what turned out to be wax. There had to be dozens of the blades formed and solidified in mere seconds. Mr. Three threw his arms wide and the blades went rocketing towards everyone present, Vivi and Mikita most of all.</p><p>Zoro deflected the steel-hard blades headed his way; his quick attempt to coat his swords with Haki leaving cuts and cracks in the hardened wax swords.</p><p>Sanji kicked away any sword he couldn’t weave around while trying to get between the attack and the women.</p><p>Usopp fired his pistols with precision, knocking every blade’s trajectory into the ground before they got close to him.</p><p>Nami spun her staff to deflect any sword she didn’t instinctively dodge with her Observation. The navigator wasn’t in any danger from the hasty, widespread attack.</p><p>Vivi and Mikita both started to dodge, only for Luffy to appear between them and the swords in a spark. Every blade was smashed out of the air in a blink, the shattered remains scattered over the grass around Luffy.</p><p>Koala seemingly disappeared and reappeared on the opposite side of the giants with Miss Goldenweek under her arm. The short girl blinking in confusion as to what had just happened and wondering how she’d gotten to where she was.</p><p>Sabo didn’t bother moving. The white wax swords passed through his body in clouds of black ash and orange embers. A physical attack without Haki or some other trick wasn’t a problem for a Logia Fruit User.</p><p>In the very next instant, Mr. Three didn’t even have time to lower his hands from his sudden attack, Broggy’s massive axe, along with Dorry’s titanic sword, slammed down on the Officer Agent! A huge plume of dirt and rock was thrown up from the strike. The one thing that everyone noticed was the blades of both weapons were a dark black when before they’d been dull grey. The black seemed to fade away after a few seconds and the two giants lifted their weapons away from the ground. None of the Haki users could hear Mr. Three’s ‘Voice’ anymore.</p><p>“Just like the rest, some humans just don’t understand.” Broggy shook his head. Both giants were casually wiping the wax swords from their clothing and armor. Not a single blade from the Devil Fruit User had so much as pierced their clothing, much less their skin. The vast size difference, not to mention expert Haki use, had made the attack no more effective than a stiff breeze.</p><p>“Been that way since before we started our duel.” Dorry agreed with a scoff as he set his sword back where it’d been before the group had been interrupted.</p><p>“True enough.” Broggy shrugged as he set his axe back down.</p><p>“Well, that just happened…” Sabo blinked at the abrupt end of ‘Loan Shark’ Galdino.</p><p>“Vivi~ Mikita~ Are you unharmed my lovelies?!” Sanji dashed forward and looked the ladies over.</p><p>“We’re fine, Sanji.” Vivi smiled kindly at the overly-concerned chef.</p><p>“Luffy took care of it for us.” Mikita smiled at her Captain. Luffy gave her a bright smile of his own in return.</p><p>“Koala, is Marianne safe?” Sabo questioned his partner.</p><p>“She’s fine, just a little confused.” Koala smiled at the shorter girl.</p><p>“What’s going on?” Marianne spoke for the first time since she’d come out of the jungle with Mr. Three.</p><p>“You’re ‘Flag-Bearer of Freedom’ Marianne, correct?” Sabo asked kindly to Miss Goldenweek. Marianne’s eyes widened and she took a step back immediately. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! It’s alright. We’re not Bounty Hunters or anything!” He tried to calm the teen down as he raised his hands in a placating gesture.</p><p>“We’re here on behalf of a group that believes the same as you do.” Koala smiled gently at Marianne. “You had a Bounty placed on your head for leading a revolt against the Ruler of your homeland, correct?”</p><p>“Yes…” Marianne looked cautiously between Koala and Sabo.</p><p>“We’re members of the Revolutionary Army.” Sabo informed Marianne, getting a shocked gasp out of not only the redhead, but of everyone in hearing range. Barring Luffy, who already knew, along with Dorry and Broggy who didn’t know what the Revolutionary Army was. “We’d like to help you take back your homeland from its oppressive monarchy. Would you join us in helping free not only your homeland, but the world from the exploitation of the World Government?”</p><p>“What?” Marianne looked supremely confused by the question.</p><p>“You’re really not the best at this, Sabo.” Koala shook her head at her partner.</p><p>“I thought I was simple and concise,” Sabo rubbed the back of his head. “Isn’t that what you said I should do?”</p><p>“Yes, but you shouldn’t just ask right after you tell someone that we’re a part of the Revolutionary Army.” Koala gestured to the confused Marianne and the still shocked Straw Hats. “How about we chat a bit in private, Marianne?”</p><p>“Okay… Can we have tea?” Marianne asked politely, she could <em>really</em> use some warm tea to soothe her nerves. Her partner had just been <strong>decimated</strong> by two giants, she needed time to process.</p><p>“Of course, show me the way to your ship and we’ll make your preference.” Koala offered gently to the younger girl. The two headed into the jungle to raid the ship that Mr. Three and Marianne had come to Little Garden on.</p><p>“Umm, is that okay? We don’t know anything about her abilities.” Nami spoke up while looking in the direction that Marianne and Koala had left in.</p><p>“They’ll be fine,” Sabo nodded to Nami with a sure smile on his face. “Koala is strong, and a good judge of character. She wouldn’t have offered if she believed Marianne would be a threat.”</p><p>“Join our banquet, Sabo!” Luffy invited with a laugh. “We’ll catch up over food! Dinosaur meat is amazing! I’ll introduce you to my crew!”</p><p>“Well, if everyone’s alright with it.” Sabo looked at everyone politely.</p><p>“Your Luffy’s brother, of course it’s fine.” Nami instantly agreed as she disassembled her staff and stowed it away.</p><p>“I’ll prepare more plates.” Sanji nodded to his fellow blonde.</p><p>“It’s fine by me.” Zoro merely shrugged as he headed over to the booze.</p><p>“So, you’re Luffy’s brother? You look different than I expected.” Usopp mentioned as he looked back and forth between his Captain and the top hat wearing man.</p><p>“I’m not going to say anything against it.” Mikita shook her head at the mere idea.</p><p>“I’m not technically a crewmate, so I don’t have a say.” Vivi grinned slightly at the taller man.</p><p>“Thank you for having us.” Sabo gave a short bow to the crew and the two giants.</p><p>From there the impromptu banquet kicked off properly. Dorry and Broggy had their first chef-cooked meat in a century! The two giants had tears in their eyes from the excellent flavor. Sanji took their compliments with a smile as he made sure the ladies were all taken care of. Koala and Marianne returned from their chat with tea and a large bag of things over Koala’s shoulder. Sanji instantly noodled over to the two ladies and quickly had them set up with food and drink.</p><p>“Wait, you’re Broggy and Dorry, the Red Ogre and the Blue Ogre?” Sabo blinked at the two giants as they sipped their barrels of booze.</p><p>“Aye, that’s what they called us back in the day.” Dorry grinned down at Sabo.</p><p>“One-Hundred-Million per head! Gyababababa!” Broggy laughed at the Bounty they’d racked up back in the day.</p><p>“Do you know a giant by the name of Morley?” Sabo asked curiously to the two.</p><p>“Morley? Aye, we knew a giant by that name back when we were still pirates. Do you know him?” Dorry questioned as he and Broggy leaned forward a bit.</p><p>“Yes, he’s a part of the Revolutionary Army now. He did a stint in Impel Down and managed to escape.” Sabo smiled up at the giants.</p><p>“Gegyagyagyagya! Figures that oddball would get captured and still managed to find his way out!” Dorry tossed his head back and laughed loudly.</p><p>“Gyabababababa! Morley joined up with an army that wants to take down the World Government? Elbaf would never join up with them. I’m surprised he decided to help!” Broggy’s own uproarious laughter joined Dorry’s.</p><p>“He’ll be surprised to hear you two are still alive, apparently everyone on Elbaf has basically written you two off as dead.” Koala commented after finishing her bite of dinosaur meat.</p><p>“Well, after a hundred years it’s to be expected, I guess.” Dorry shrugged at the knowledge before taking a pull from the barrel he was holding and emptying it. He promptly reached for another.</p><p>“We have a Transponder Snail that we could use to get in contact with Morley if you’re interested. He could let Elbaf know you two are alive at least.” Sabo offered to the giants.</p><p>“Hmm, it would be nice to talk to an old friend after so long.” Broggy nodded thoughtfully.</p><p>“I’ll be right back.” Sabo smiled as he raced back towards the ship he and Koala had arrived on. Several minutes later Sabo had the Transponder Snail at the ‘banquet’ and was dialing a number. After several rings the other end picked up and a voice that was familiar to Sabo, Koala, Dorry, and Broggy answered.</p><p>“Hello, Sabo, it’s unusual for you to call me directly. Fuhahahahaha!” Morley laughed over the line.</p><p>“It really is him!” Broggy exclaimed in shock.</p><p>“It is!” Dorry grinned down at the Transponder Snail.</p><p>“I have some old friends here that would like to speak to you Morley.” Sabo chuckled lightly.</p><p>“Old friends, where are you?” Morley asked with confusion evident in his tone.</p><p>“Little Garden, I’ll let them say hi.” Sabo held up the receiver so that Broggy and Dorry could speak.</p><p>“Still an oddball, Morley? Gyababababa!” Broggy laughed at his own question.</p><p>“Heard you got yourself caught and then managed to sneak your way out! Gegyagyagyagya!” Dorry cracked up and a loud gasp came from the other end of the line.</p><p>“Dorry?! Broggy?! Is that really you two?!” Morley demanded loudly and both giants cracked up even more. “Where have you two been? Last anyone heard of you two was that you’d started a Divine Duel and were settling it. But that was a hundred years ago! We all thought you were dead!”</p><p>“Nope! Still alive and still in the middle of our Divine Duel!” Dorry informed the other giant.</p><p>“73,466 battles and 73,466 draws, so far! Gyabababa!” Broggy laughed into the receiver.</p><p>“You’ve been dueling for the last hundred years?!” Morley was clearly shocked.</p><p>“Of course, a victor hasn’t been decided yet.” Dorry responded as if it was simple. Broggy nodded along next to him.</p><p>“Look, I’m not a Cleric of Elbaf’s God, you know that. But I’m certain you’ve both gone far past <strong>all</strong> of the Rites of the Divine Duel! If I call up old Srogir I’m sure he’d be giving you both an earful about it.” Morley sighed heavily. Everyone noticed the flinches of Broggy and Dorry at the mention of what they presumed was another giant. “Actually, that might not be a bad idea,” Morley sounded like he was thinking deeply and merely mumbled for a moment. “Sabo said you were on Little Garden, right? I’ll call back home and have a group of warriors sail out that way with a Cleric. They can determine if your Divine Duel is ended. It’ll probably take them a month or two to get there though. Can you two try not to kill each other in that time?” The other giant sounded like he doubted his old friends.</p><p>“Well, if a Cleric is coming to decide then we can’t really argue.” Broggy scratched at his beard. “The Divine Duel can only be called complete without a victor by one of the Clerics after all.”</p><p>“We’ve been at it for a hundred years with no victor, at this point what’s a month or two break, right?” Dorry shrugged his large shoulders as he ran his fingers through his long beard. Vivi’s bright smile at the possibility of a peaceful resolution went unnoticed by most. The gentle princess was just happy that a century of fighting might come to a peaceful end with both warriors’ honor intact.</p><p>“Good, I’ll make the call shortly, but don’t blame me if the Cleric they send is Srogir himself. I’m sure he’ll be going off like a volcano about this.” Morley chuckled at the other two giants. Both Dorry and Broggy looked less than thrilled at the idea of meeting this Srogir.</p><p>“Thanks for the help, Morley. It’s much appreciated, old friend.” Broggy chuckled lightly, by giant’s standard anyway.</p><p>“Aye, thanks for helping us out.” Dorry thanked their old friend. “Being stuck on this rock another hundred years would have been awful.”</p><p>“Of course, I can’t let you two waste away fighting each other on some random island forever, can I? Fuhahahaha!” Morley laughed loudly.</p><p>“You’re still an oddball though! Gyababababa!” Broggy burst into laughter of his own.</p><p>“An oddball through and through! Gegyagyagyagya!” Dorry laughed as well, slapping his knee.</p><p>“Oh you two!” Morley growled through the Transponder Snail. “You know what? Just for that, I’m going to make sure they send Head Cleric Srogir to fetch you two!” Both Dorry and Broggy abruptly stopped laughing.</p><p>“Could you, perhaps, not do that, Morley?” Broggy asked politely.</p><p>“No. Fuhahahaha!” Morley laughed before hanging up.</p><p>“Ahhhh… Damn it…” Dorry hung his head.</p><p>“We’re not going to hear the end of this…” Broggy lamented, his head also hung low.</p><p>“I don’t even know who this Srogir is, and I’m intimidated.” Usopp spoke up with a few beads of sweat on his forehead.</p><p>“Hey, at least you guys are going to get off this island, right?” Luffy smiled widely up at the two giants.</p><p>“True enough… Still…” Dorry huffed before reaching for his ribs and another barrel of booze. “I need good food and booze to prepare for the old man’s arrival.”</p><p>“Well said…” Broggy agreed, grabbing his own ribs and another barrel as well.</p><p>“Back to the banquet!” Luffy cheered and everyone just decided to go with it. Not like the Log Pose would reset in a day here anyway.</p><p>“You should take this with you, Luffy.” Sabo smiled as he pulled a Transponder Snail out of the bag that Koala had been carrying. “You can use it to keep in touch with people. There useful and don’t require too much extra care.”</p><p>“Hmm, that would be good.” Luffy nodded as he picked up the large snail. The Transponder Snail looked back at him blankly, as was normal for their species.</p><p>“Who’s was that, anyway?” Mikita asked from nearby where she and the other ladies, Marianne included, were chatting.</p><p>“Mr. Three’s, the boss is the only one that knows the number of that Snail.” Marianne spoke up from the group of women.</p><p>“A line to a Warlord, huh?” Luffy’s eyes gleamed at the thought and Sabo stifled a chuckle. It was so very ‘Luffy’ to pick a fight with a Warlord so soon after entering the Grand Line.</p><p><em>‘Hmm, maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to give him this particular Transponder Snail…’</em> Sabo thought in the privacy of his mind. But, Luffy seemed to have already made up his mind about going after Crocodile, so Sabo was fairly certain no one was going to stop his little brother now.</p><p>“We still need to look for a Log Pose that’s reset too, Luffy.” Nami reminded her lover. “We can’t wait a year for our Log Pose to reset after all.”</p><p>“Oh, there were a few Eternal Poses on the ship, I collected them all.” Koala mentioned as she got up and moved over to the large bag. “There are two I can recommend, one is for Drum Island. It’s a Winter Island, but the Log Pose resets there in only sixteen hours. The other, is for the princess.” She smiled as she held up an Eternal Pose with the name ‘Alabasta’ engraved on the top of it.</p><p>“An Eternal Pose to Alabasta!” Vivi was by Koala’s side so fast she was nothing more than a blur! She cradled the Eternal Pose gently, as if it was the most delicate and precious of treasures. “Thank you! Thank you so much! I can’t tell you how much this means to me!”</p><p>“It’s no problem.” Koala smiled warmly at Vivi. “Your Kingdom is how countries <strong>should</strong> be governed. By rulers that love and care for their people above all else.”</p><p>“Then you don’t believe the lies about my father using Dance Powder?” Vivi’s eyes were watering at finding another person that believed in her father’s innocence.</p><p>“Of course not, everyone knows Nefeltari Cobra would sooner die with his people than betray them.” Koala assured Vivi and gently pulled the bluenette into a soft hug.</p><p>“You’ve got a nice lady there, Sabo.” Luffy smiled at the gentle scene.</p><p>“She’s one in a million.” Sabo agreed with a warm smile on his face as he watched Koala comfort Vivi.</p><p>The party continued well into the night. Merriment was in the air as Sabo and Luffy caught up. The ladies started to giggle amongst themselves when the booze was beginning to run dry. Many a look was sent towards Luffy and Sabo from the giggling ladies. Both Luffy and Sabo wisely decided not to ask about that.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>Brothers reunited! Sabo and Koala have come to recruit Miss Goldenweek! Or more accurately, Marianne the ‘Flag-Bearer of Freedom’!</strong>
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  <strong>Mr. Three learned a very valuable lesson today. DON’T FUCK WITH GIANTS! They WILL kill you!</strong>
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  <strong>Looks like Dorry and Broggy are getting off Little Garden! Woohoo!</strong>
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  <strong>Though neither of them seem particularly happy about the Cleric coming to retrieve them. What kind of reaming are these two proud warriors going to be on the receiving end of?</strong>
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  <strong>An Eternal Pose! Two in fact! One to Alabasta! One to Drum Island! Which one? What path will be taken?</strong>
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  <strong>What’re the ladies giggling about while shooting glances at Sabo and Luffy?</strong>
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  <strong>Keep reading to find out!</strong>
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  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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<a name="section0023"><h2>23. Goodbye, Little Garden</h2></a>
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  <strong>Hey friends and fans! Kairomaru is bringing you another chapter of The Logia Brothers! The time to depart Little Garden is here. How will the Straw Hats say goodbye to Dorry and Broggy? How will Luffy and Sabo part? Which island are they headed for, Drum or straight to Alabasta?</strong>
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  <strong>So without further delay, please enjoy.</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Chapter 23 – Goodbye, Little Garden</strong>
</p><p>The morning light had broken over Little Garden and everyone was waking up from the previous night’s banquet. After some time for any hangover to pass, the expanded group had some breakfast. Sanji once more showing off his skill by making a breakfast that even Dorry and Broggy could enjoy. The two giants had happily scarfed down their food and washed it down with fresh water. It was late morning when everyone noticed Luffy and Sabo chatting and laughing. It brought a smile to Nami and Koala to see their lovers being brothers. Including what looked like teasing and boasting.</p><p>“Come on, Sabo! Just like when we were kids! I’m a lot stronger now! I’ll beat you this time!” Luffy challenged with his right fist raised in front of him.</p><p>“How many times have you said that before, <em>little brother</em>?” Sabo laughed with a challenging smile.</p><p>“Sounds like you’re scared to me.” Luffy retorted with a wide grin.</p><p>“Huh, maybe you <strong>do</strong> need me to school you again?” Sabo stared Luffy down. “You seem to have gotten a big head, Crybaby Luffy.”</p><p>“Hey! You’re getting a punch for that!” Luffy huffed indignantly, his fist sparking with electricity for a brief moment.</p><p>“Really now?” Sabo chuckled as wisps of ash and cinder came off his coat.</p><p>“If you two are going to spar take it further away from the rest of us!” Koala shouted as she backed up with Marianne behind her.</p><p>“Luffy, don’t drag us into it please!” Nami also shouted to her lover as the Straw Hats all took notice of the approaching spar and started backing away.</p><p>“Oh? Are they going to spar?” Broggy questioned as he and Dorry came back from washing up in the sea.</p><p>“This should be interesting. Devil Fruit Users have entertaining fights normally.” Dorry grinned as the two warrior giants sat down with their backs against one of the mountain-sized skulls of their ancient catches.</p><p>The group watched on as Luffy and Sabo stretched a bit before their spar. Sabo crouched down into a wide horse stance, placed his palms on the matching knee, then he twisted his torso to stretch out his shoulders and back. Luffy stretched out his legs, switching from one to the next by shifting his weight and balance. When the two brothers finished their stretches, they shook out their arms and legs and squared up with about three meters between them.</p><p>“Dorry, Broggy, could you give us a countdown?” Luffy asked and the two giants grinned.</p><p>“Three…” Broggy began with a smile.</p><p>“Two…” Dorry had a matching grin on his face.</p><p>“One…” Broggy rumbled with the beginnings of a chuckle heard in his tone.</p><p>“Start!” Dorry roared and both Luffy and Sabo blurred forward to meet in the middle!</p><p>A loud clap was heard as the brothers clashed. Luffy’s fist centimeters from Sabo’s face, the punch stopped by Sabo’s grip on his little brother’s wrist. Sabo’s own strike, an odd-looking strike that pressed his index and middle finger together, separate from his ring and pinky finger that were also pressed together with the thumb by itself parallel to the other four fingers, was being blocked by Luffy’s grip on Sabo’s wrist.</p><p>“That’s a funny looking strike, Sabo.” Luffy commented with a grin.</p><p>“It’s the claw of a dragon.” Sabo informed him with a smile.</p><p>The two brothers separated and jumped back to make some distance from one another. They were quickly back at it in another blur. Luffy lashed out with a kick which Sabo blocked with his forearm. Sabo struck with his dragon claw Luffy parried the blow away. A back fist from Luffy was caught and a knee was sent towards his midsection. Luffy’s own knee came up to block and there was a small shockwave on impact. A flurry of strikes and kicks were exchanged and most of the Straw Hats stood there, mouths agape, as they actually saw Luffy have to <em>try</em> against an opponent for the first time. To their eyes the brothers were nothing more than blurs!</p><p>“Hmm, Luffy’s doing really well,” Koala commented as she followed the spar. “Sabo only has a few people that can keep up with him in the Revolutionary Army.”</p><p>“You can see them?” Vivi questioned the other woman, completely unable to follow the fight.</p><p>“Trust me, it’s not easy.” Nami spoke up with her brown eyes locked on the fight. Even pushing her Observation to its current limit was only letting her see each punch, kick, knee, elbow, and occasional head butt as a blurring motion. “I’ve never seen Luffy have to get serious before. Every enemy has always been so far beneath him he didn’t have to really try.”</p><p>The brothers separated again, this time leaping backwards and leaving about fifteen meters between them.</p><p>“So, are we done with the warm up?” Sabo asked with a grin.</p><p>“Sure thing, let’s try and make this more fun!” Luffy’s wide smile was in full effect.</p><p>Lightning danced across Luffy’s body while Sabo’s coat and hat began to emit clouds of black ash and glowing embers. Both brothers raised their right hands, their index and middle fingers extended. All the Straw Hats recognized this technique of Luffy’s. Seeing Sabo apparently know it as well was surprising, but not a complete shock. Koala was on the opposite end of the spectrum. Sabo had told her the origin of this technique, but to see someone else, even the original creator, using it against Sabo was new.</p><p>A thin beam of lightning left Luffy’s fingers at the same instant that a bullet of burning ash left Sabo’s. The two attacks met closer to Sabo, simply because lightning was the faster attack, bit the blast the colliding powers caused was surprising. Sabo raised his left hand, in the same ‘gun’ position and fired from both hands. Luffy responded in kind and the brothers had a shootout against each other. Explosion after explosion went off as their attacks met and the audience watched on with various emotions.</p><p>“Sabo knows the Pistol?” Nami watched on as best as her Observation would allow.</p><p>“He calls it his <strong>Cinder Shot</strong>, but yes.” Koala replied as she watched the Devil Fruit shootout.</p><p>“Anybody else having some trouble keeping up?” Usopp questioned, though his eyes never left the spar.</p><p>“No.” Sanji and Zoro denied as they watched on. It wasn’t the full truth, but the two could follow the fight fairly well.</p><p>Sabo seemingly exploded into a cloud of burning ashes that covered the impromptu battlefield. Luffy disappeared in a spark before the wave of ash could touch him. He reappeared above the billowing, black cloud and unleashed a barrage of lightning bolts into the ash. The black cloud was blasted with multiple holes, only to respond with large black spears of compressed and solidified ash being launched at Luffy en masse! Another spark and Luffy was no longer in their path, now standing on the opposite side of the swirling ash cloud.</p><p>The Straw Hat Captain sparked brightly, completely covered in lightning now and a crackling cage of electricity surrounded the ash cloud. Now contained, Luffy began to shrink the lightning cage and further trap his older brother. Or he would have, if a brightly burning drill of ash didn’t blast a hole in his lightning cage. The drill exploded into another, smaller cloud that then reformed into Sabo. The top hat brother’s arms were nothing more than clouds of ash and cinder as he spun through the air. From the clouds emerged vicious, black, sickle-like blades that spun through the air towards Luffy. It was a wave of spinning death that blanketed the whole area of their battlefield. Luffy’s arms were a bright white-blue storm as he deflected and destroyed every sickle headed his way. When the wave finished the battlefield was filled with sickle blades. The only clear spot was directly around Luffy. With a flex of his power, a wave of lighting was launched from Luffy and shattered every sickle on the field.</p><p>“Not bad, Luffy, you’ve gotten better since I saw you three years ago!” Sabo praised his little brother as he landed on the ground.</p><p>“You too, Sabo!” Luffy laughed as both brothers’ right arms became a raging storm of their respective element.</p><p>“We should probably take cover with Dorry and Broggy.” Koala recommended the group. She’d seen this particular technique before and didn’t fancy being even this far away if <strong>two</strong> of them were going to clash! The group of humans took refuge near the sitting giants, both of whom hadn’t taken their eyes off the fight for even an instant. They could easily follow a battle at this level with over a century of experience.</p><p>“Haiken!” Sabo bellowed as he threw his fist forward. A burning, hell storm of ash and embers exploded forward, decimating everything in its path!</p><p>“Raiken!” Luffy thundered in reply as he threw his own punch. The titanic blast of lightning that had decimated the Black Cat’s ship and remaining crew back in East Blue appeared again. The attack simply made everything it came in contact with vanish in the blinding light!</p><p>The two attacks clashed and a resounding explosion shook Little Garden. Even Dorry and Broggy shielded their eyes with a hand as the shockwave blasted passed them! The two elements had slammed together in an immense display of power and the land was torn asunder. Part of the grass was now burning while sparks of electricity danced throughout the air.</p><p>“Holy shit!” Mikita gaped at the level of power she was witnessing for the first time. Was <strong>this</strong> what it was like when skilled Logia Users did battle?!</p><p>“One more?” Luffy grinned wildly at Sabo. He hadn’t had this much fun in <strong>years</strong>! He’d missed going all out on Mt. Corvo with his elder brothers!</p><p>“You think you can handle it?” Sabo also had a ferocious grin on his face as he stared down his little brother. He’d definitely missed his brothers over the last three years. He couldn’t go all out like this with most of the Revolutionary Army members. Except for Dragon, of course, the Leader was powerful to say the least.</p><p>Luffy’s response to his brother’s question was to become lightning. He was too bright to directly look at as he revved up for an even more powerful technique! Sabo responded in kind, becoming lost as his body blasted a volcanoes’ worth of ash and cinder into the air. Everyone watching could swear that over the crackling of wild lightning and the snapping of the burning ash that two roars were heard.</p><p>“Wait… No… No, no, no, no!” Koala’s panicked reaction set off warning bells for everyone. The reactions of Dorry and Broggy were even more shocking. Both giants’ arms were now jet-black and the Elbaf warriors dug their fingers into the earth. Their massive hands now acting as shields for the humans gathered around them.</p><p>“Ash Make: Cinder Black Dragon!” Sabo’s voice rang out, loud and clear, from within the hell storm of burning ash. The massive ash cloud, glowing from within by tons of burning cinder, formed into a massive Eastern Dragon. The long serpentine body, the long whiskers, the antler-like horns, the four legs, each with three claws, and the long tail that flew behind it. The dragon looked almost alive, burning orange light visible from within its large eyes, snarling maw, and the various cracks along its sinuous body.</p><p>“Goro Goro no Lightning Storm Dragon!” Luffy called forth from the massive lightning bolts that now leapt from his body, a similar Eastern Dragon to his brother’s. The same body, whiskers, antlers, legs, claws, and tail though all slightly different in their own ways. The sparking beast was hard to look at, being as bright as it was. Though for those that could see it, they saw a blue-white dragon with dark-purple light coming from its eyes and opened jaws, various sparks of the purple lightning emerging along the length of the massive dragon as well.</p><p>The two titanic dragons rushed towards each other at the brother’s will. The clash of such power would likely level the entire area! Dorry and Broggy steeled themselves to take the blast for their human friends. They were giants! The greatest warriors of Elbaf! Even this immense show of power wouldn’t take them down!</p><p>“LUFFY!!!” Nami screamed at her lover, the sound of her voice somehow heard above the two massive dragons about to clash.</p><p>“SABO!!!” Koala was also screaming for her lover’s attention, to get him out of this combat high before the spar killed someone!</p><p>Just as the two dragons would have clashed they both veered away from each other. Sabo’s black dragon was heading to the right and towards the ocean. While Luffy’s white-blue dragon headed upwards towards the cloudless sky. The black dragon kicked up a massive spray of ocean water as it crashed into the drink. Steam billowed out from the water for a while as the dragon cooled and slowly broke apart as it was soaked. The white dragon lost cohesion and disappeared in a shower of lightning bolts that could be seen even in the bright morning light.</p><p>Luffy reformed from his lightning state and solidified into his normal body. Sabo followed suit and the billowing clouds of ash swirled together into his normal form. The two brothers both exhaled and chuckled at each other. It had been a fun spar! It brought up many good memories for the two of their childhood growing up on Mt. Corvo.</p><p>“Luffy you idiot!” Nami’s fist crashed into the back of Luffy’s head, nearly making the Captain face-plant into the ground.</p><p>“Sabo!” Koala grabbed Sabo’s coat and pulled him down slightly so he could see the angry pout on her face.</p><p>“Are you <em>trying</em> to kill all of us?” Nami demanded as she shook Luffy back and forth by his red vest.</p><p>“Seriously, I get that you two haven’t seen each other in years, but that’s no reason to totally lose control!” Koala reprimanded Sabo with her angry pout in full effect.</p><p>“Sorry Nami…” Luffy apologized as the orangette stopped shaking him.</p><p>“My bad, Koala, sorry about that.” Sabo rubbed the back of his head.</p><p>“What the hell are you two?!” Vivi screamed while pointing at the two brothers. “You made giant dragons! Out of Devil Fruit Powers! What the hell?!” The princess was clearly having a hard time processing what she’d just witnessed.</p><p>“We’ve had our powers for a decade Vivi; of course we know how to <em>really</em> use them.” Luffy shrugged off her question casually. Nami shook her head and let out an exasperated sigh.</p><p>“Well, to be fair, we <strong>did</strong> get some very good training with them.” Sabo remarked as he adjusted his cravat that Koala’s grip had upset.</p><p>“What kind of training lets you do <strong>that</strong> with a Devil Fruit?” Sanji questioned as the rest of the humans walked closer to the brothers.</p><p>“Hmm, well both Grandpa and Kuzan are really strong.” Luffy looked thoughtful.</p><p>“Kuzan?” Zoro questioned, not familiar with the name.</p><p>“Marine Admiral Aokiji.” Sabo clarified only for everyone’s jaws to hit the ground. Even Dorry and Broggy looked shocked that the two men had received training from a Marine Admiral.</p><p>“How?!” Usopp demanded as he pointed between the two brothers.</p><p>“Grandpa.” Luffy replied plainly.</p><p>“Luffy’s Grandpa.” Sabo replied while pointing at Luffy.</p><p>“Yeah, sure, that explains everything.” Mikita deadpanned at the two of them.</p><p>“I’ll explain it later.” Nami shook her head. She knew who Luffy’s grandfather was, and Luffy rarely talked about himself much.</p><p>“It was a great battle!” Dorry praised the two young men.</p><p>“That was excellent, even by Elbaf’s standards! Well done!” Broggy gave them a bright smile. Both Sabo and Luffy grinned in return to the giants.</p><p>With the spar over, the two groups began to prepare for their individual departures from Little Garden. Zoro and Sanji were butchering up a large dinosaur for meat to take with them. Usopp, Vivi, and Mikita were gathering fruit for the voyage and storing it on the Going Merry. Sabo and Koala were getting Marianne settled into their small ship. The sixteen year old artist was more than willing to go along with the two Revolutionaries after seeing what Sabo could do!</p><p>Before either group left, Dorry and Broggy gave them a warning.</p><p>“The Island Eater swims the waters on the side of the island that you’ll need to sail to leave this island.” Broggy informed the humans.</p><p>“It’s a massive fish type Sea King that can swallow small islands whole, hence its name.” Dorry continued and all of the humans looked perturbed, barring Luffy and Sabo.</p><p>“We could probably deal with it.” Luffy looked over to Sabo.</p><p>“Possibly, but it’s have to breach the surface so we could get a good shot at it.” Sabo mused as he thought about the situation.</p><p>“It only emerges from the depths to gobble up ships that try to leave this island.” Broggy mentioned to the two brothers.</p><p>“Unless you have a spare ship around, one of your groups will have to be the bait to lure it to the surface. But if you do so, Broggy and I can guarantee your safety, so long as you sail straight ahead, no matter what.” Dorry promised their new friends.</p><p>“What about Mr. Three’s ship?” Marianne spoke up, the quiet artist’s suggestion making everyone look at her. “What? It’s not like anyone is using it now.”</p><p>“I like it.” Luffy laughed and Sabo chuckled.</p><p>“Could we trouble one of you to go get the abandoned ship and bring it to the other side of the island while we sail our own ships there?” Koala asked Dorry and Broggy with a smile.</p><p>“Of course, for our friends such a task is simple. Gyababababa!” Broggy laughed as he and Dorry turned and started to walk towards the other side of the island to pick up Mr. Three’s old ship.</p><p>Within the next thirty minutes the two groups were ready to leave Little Garden. Dorry and Broggy had brought Mr. Three’s ship to the edge of the island and placed it into the water. With a nod from Nami, the abandoned ship was pushed forward by a light, in giant terms, push from Dorry’s boot-clad foot. The vessel floated away from the island. As it passed out of the shallows and into open waters a massive form rose up from the ocean!</p><p>“Huh, so that’s an Island Eater?” Luffy tilted his head at the mountain-sized goldfish-like Sea King.</p><p>“Can you two really do something about that?!” Usopp demanded from the crow’s nest of the Going Merry. The brothers’ were both strong, he’d witnessed that firsthand, but that Seaking was the size of a mountain!</p><p>“You’ve only seen us pit our powers against each other.” Sabo grinned as he and Luffy both stood at the bow of the Going Merry.</p><p>“Wait until you see what we can do when we work together!” Luffy’s wide smile was back and the Captain was clearly excited.</p><p>“You should do it quickly then,” Broggy spoke up. “As soon as the Island Eater swallows that boat it’ll dive beneath the waves again.”</p><p>Sabo’s left arm turned into a swirling cloud of burning ash. In the next moment the ash shot high into the air and formed a large black sword that even dwarfed Dorry’s weapon! Heat from within the blade emanated outwards from the construct. Luffy lifted his right arm, turning it into a sparking storm of lighting and added his power to the super-massive construct. The black sword was now sparking with bright lightning and giving off a ridiculous amount of heat. Even the Island Eater took notice of the massive weapon, pausing in its attempt to eat the empty ship.</p><p>“<strong>Mountain Cleaver!</strong>” Luffy and Sabo roared as Sabo used his control over his construct to swing the massive blade down on the Island Eater. Luffy amplified and focused the lighting onto the edge of the blade until it was too bright to look at. The Island Eater, a creature so massive it had never had to fear for its life before, floated on the surface unaware of its situation. The god-like weapon sliced the gargantuan Sea King in two as if it was made of paper! Even Dorry and Broggy felt their eyes widen at the sight of the Island Eater felled in a single blow by mere humans!</p><p>“Are you sure they’re human?!” Vivi screamed as the waves from the attack hitting the sea had caused the two ships to rock and tilt.</p><p>“Set sail!” Luffy pointed straight ahead as the Going Merry’s sails were lowered and caught the wind. Sabo leapt off the Going Merry and onto his own smaller ship. Koala lowered their sails once he was back on board and the two ships both sailed away from Little Garden.</p><p>“It was great seeing you again Luffy!” Sabo waved to his little brother as their ships’ paths began to diverge.</p><p>“Let’s meet up again, Sabo!” Luffy waved back along with the rest of the Straw Hats. Luffy perked up as he turned to wave goodbye to the two giants as well. “Dorry! Broggy! It was awesome meeting you guys!” Luffy yelled back to the two waving giants. “Take the fresh Sea King as a going away present! Shishishishi!” Luffy had listened to the two giants last night, knowing that they’d both missed the taste of Sea King. He felt it only right that they be given the Island Eater that had caused them so much grief over the last few decades.</p><p>“Gegyagyagyagya! What interesting humans have been born in the last hundred years we’ve been stuck here, eh Broggy?” Dorry laughed even as he eyed the mass of fresh Sea King meat.</p><p>“Gyababababababa! Indeed, Dorry, some very interesting things that we’ve missed!” Broggy laughed just as loudly as his friend did.</p><p>“Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m going to slice me off enough of that meat to last a while. We still have a month or two to wait for the old man to get here.” Dorry sighed a he waded into the sea on his way to drag at least half of the Island Eater into the shallows.</p><p>“I’ll help you.” Broggy grinned as he waded out beside Dorry. “Can’t have you taking all that Sea King for yourself!” The animals and seagulls of Little Garden would be sharing in their newfound bounty soon. It was best to cut off as much as they could carry before the animals go to it. With any luck the other half of the goldfish-like Sea King; that was still pouring out a lake’s worth of blood into the ocean, would attract other Sea Kings that had avoided Little Garden ever since the Island Eater showed up. It should make for good fishing, for giants, later on.</p><p>-The Going Merry-</p><p>“That was a fun island!” Luffy smiled while sitting on his special seat atop Merry’s figurehead. “Is Alabasta anything like that, Vivi?”</p><p>“Of course not!” Vivi shook her head at the Captain. “We don’t have dinosaurs, or giants, in Alabasta! Humans had a hard enough time colonizing Sandy Island in the ancient past, it would have been completely impossible if there were dinosaurs too.”</p><p>“Well, we’ll be able to see it soon enough.” Nami smiled as she sidled up next to Vivi and put her arm around the princess’ shoulders. The orangette navigator eyed the Eternal Pose that Vivi was holding and lined up their course. “We’ll get their much faster thanks to the Eternal Pose. We won’t have to worry about island hopping.”</p><p>“Thank you all so much, for taking me back home, and for helping me.” Vivi bowed to Luffy as he looked back at her. “I’ll never be able to thank you enough.”</p><p>“Eh, you don’t have to bow or anything.” Luffy shook his head. “Just fill my belly with all the tastiest meats you have after I smash in this dumb Croc’s face!”</p><p>“Of course!” Vivi beamed at Luffy. “I’ll have every meat dish that Alabasta cuisine has to offer, made for you if you want!” She promised and then giggled when Luffy started drooling.</p><p>“We’re friends, Vivi, that’s more than enough!” Luffy wiped away his drool to give her a smile.</p><p>“For Vivi, but I still want to negotiate with the king too~!” Nami chuckled as she pulled Vivi into a side-hug and gently laid her head atop the bluenette’s.</p><p>“Nami…” Vivi played along with an exasperated sigh. The two women had become very close in only a few short days.</p><p>“To Alabasta!” Luffy cheered and pointed forward.</p><p>-In the bathroom-</p><p>“Ugh, my head, I hope the pain killers kick in soon.” Mikita groaned as she splashed some cool water on her face. “I can’t believe I can still get Climate Sickness. I’ve been on the Grand Line for a few years now. I should be used to this.” The platinum-blonde looked at her reflection and sighed. Her skin was flushed and she looked tired. “Maybe a nap will help?” She made her way to tell Luffy and Nami that she’d be resting for a bit. She’d probably have to explain Climate Sickness to the newcomers, but she’d be fine in a day or two. She gently scratched at the annoying bug bite she’d gotten on Little Garden. It figured that some dumb mosquito or something would bite her while they were there.</p><p>None of them could have known how drastically their course would be changed tomorrow morning.</p><p>
  <strong>-End Chapter-</strong>
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  <strong>-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-</strong>
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  <strong>Well… That’s probably not good…</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>The Straw Hats might need to make a detour.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Other than that, holy hell! Sabo and Luffy show off what they can do! You don’t have Logia powers for ten years, along with training from an Admiral and Vice-Admiral, who happens to be Monkey D. Garp, and stay a beginner!</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>How did you like that spar? Did you like how the brothers left Little Garden?</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Luffy gave Dorry and Broggy the best, in his meat-obsessed mind, going away gift ever! They did say they were missing the taste of Sea King after all!</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>How will things continue to change, as the butterfly flaps its wings?</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Keep reading to find out!</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Until I get your reviews, later!</strong>
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